


Shore Leave

by KassiopeiaX



Series: Holiday Specials [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Action/Adventure, Complete, Crossdressing, Drunk Sex, Exxxtreme Volleyball, Fantasy, Harems, Hermaphrodites, I REGRET NOTHING, M/M, Romance, Sex Toys, Smut, Spanking, Summer Special, Super Original Deserted Island Adventure, Threesome, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-16
Updated: 2018-09-02
Packaged: 2019-05-24 06:33:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 3
Words: 32,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14949441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KassiopeiaX/pseuds/KassiopeiaX
Summary: (Complete) All Rayce ever wanted was to get laid by as many hot guys as possible on vacation at Halo-Halo Island, and beat his sexual rival Damon at his own game - is that so much to ask? But after setting sail to chase rumors of mermaids, the harem find themselves shipwrecked on a mysterious island at the mercy of a vengeful and slightly horny goddess... Trouble is, only ONE of them can leave alive.(99% M/M with a little M/F Smutty, please read the tags for triggers!)





	1. Sex on the Beach

"On my signal, we split up and cover as much ground as possible. Flaere! You're our heavy hitter. I want you on the front lines."

"Right!" He nods, sending his carrot orange ponytail bobbing.

"Finn, take mid. Support the team and run interruption: you're the axis."

"O-Okay," the blonde says uncertainly.

"I'll be on cleanup and funnel them back to you..." I punch a fist into my other palm, grinning. " _Watertight_. Now look alive, men! This is war!"

"Yeah!" Flaere cheers.

"Any questions?" I look between my two teammates. "Yes, Finn?" I point at his tentatively raised hand.

"I thought this was volleyball." I capture the petite blonde's face between both hands, forcing his rosy lips into a pucker.

"You poor, sweet thing. Beach volleyball _is_ war. Now get in position!" Breaking our huddle, we spread out in the rectangle of sand. Through the cross-hatch of the net, I see the opposing team. The muscular, blue-haired Marine, Sylphos, and the athletic form of Matteo take up the rear and leading them is... _Damon._ Ugh. How does his quiffed black hair stay perfect even in this tropical island weather? It's as big of a puffed-up, egoistic douchebag as he is. Damon's fitted, navy blue rash guard is snug over his broad chest and impressive guns; he doesn't even have to strip down to look good on the beach. The volleyball nestles casually between his arm and hip.

"Took you long enough." He laughs. "Hey Gunner, you can plan all you want, but you're still gonna lose!" Sylphos snickers in agreement as he catches the ball tossed to him.

"Service!" He launches it into the air where it blots out the intense summer sun for just a second, until he smashes it back down to the beach. Let the game begin.

The volleyball rockets furiously back and forth over the net, interrupted by spikes driven hard over the line. Finn may not be the best... well, at _anything_ that requires strength, but Flaere and I do the heavy lifting while he gamely holds the midline with strategic placements. We need it too, because playing for fun is not in Damon's wheelhouse.

"Go, go, go, get it!" I urge my teammates after he sends the ball whirling through the air like a hurricane. Finn darts quickly underneath and sets it, shaving off the topspin, which gives Flaere the perfect opening to spike. Sylphos spots it too and sprints to the net, kicking up white sand. He jumps to meet Flaere right over the border and blocks the attack, slapping the ball away.

" _Rejected!_ " He rubs it in, grinning. "Does it sting like the first time I rejected you?" Flaere's jaw just _drops_.

"Ouch!" Damon laughs. Sylphos gives Flaere the total brush off, tossing his cerulean box braids over his shoulder so Flaere can watch them wave 'bye, boy'.

"Guys, don't be like that..." Matteo shakes his head at his teammates bumping fists in victory.

"Shake it off, soldier," I reach out to touch Flaere's shoulder but he pulls away, head lowered. Yeah, we lost a point, but I'm more worried that I might have lost my best striker! Can't he just shove his feelings down out of reach somewhere like the rest of us?

Sand, sand, fucking _sand!_ I groan, pounding it as the ball rolls away from me again. And that's about as much as I can do while Flaere mills around like an emo teen who didn't get asked to prom!

"Get your head in the game!" I high-school-coach him, not that he's listening. Well, that leaves me with Finn and I can hit long, while he's good with mid-work: maybe I can make that work. I send a serve arcing high over the net, forcing the team to scramble backwards to receive it. Damon catches it just in time and bumps it off to Sylphos who makes the pass to Matteo to get it just over the line.... Finn spots an opening and lightly taps the ball over the net.

"No!" Matteo takes a dive but the volleyball hits the ground inches out of reach. Groaning, he plants his face.

"Nice one!" I slap Finn on the back. He smiles, bashful. We take our lead and run with it.

I send another spinning spike to the other side of the court that hits Sylphos' forearms and twists off uncontrollably out of bounds.

" _Ye-ees!_ " I pump a fist.

Damon is a sore loser. He turns to Matteo and orders,

"Matteo! Shirt off!" What is he playing at...

"Damon," he says indignantly.

"Just do it."

"Fine..." Matteo relents with a sigh.

"Ha," I scoff, "You think that's going to distract m-" His extra long tank peels from his toned body, revealing tan skin glowing like golden sand... And all he's wearing is a _tiny_ little black swim brief that isn't leaving my imagination a damn thing to do! What was I saying, again?

"Gunner, watch out!" I stumble back into the present at Flaere's warning, reacting just in time to bump his pass over the net. I see Matteo going for it and rush to meet him at the net - to _block,_ not because I want to ogle him or anything like that!

He seems to jump in slow motion as I run my gaze greedily over lean muscles taut beneath the surface of his skin. His medium waves of black hair are pulled into a relaxed side ponytail, set off by a red highlight hiding inside like a smokey secret between the two of us. I want to reach out and touch him... Okay, I want to do _way_ worse... Oh right, that block. I jump too late and they take their point.

I'm not even mad as Matteo hangs from the net, pushing his sexy body up against it. He looks down at me with heavy blue eyes, lips parted like a porn star for a cumshot. I indulge myself by running my hands over his chest through the mesh.

"Alright, break it up." Damon interrupts us. Matteo flashes me a naughty smile and drops to the sand. The net twangs. As he struts back into line, I see the word 'CHEEKY' printed on the back of his swim brief in big, white block letters. He hooks a finger around the fabric caught between his tight cheeks and pulls it free, letting it snap seductively into place over his ass. _Damn..._ I watch it bounce. Totally worth it.

Damon is on service. He takes a running start, pops the ball into the air and leaps after it like this is fucking basketball. He delivers the jump serve right to the address of Finn's face. You'd think he'd bring his hands up to protect himself, or move, or _something_ but nope. All I can do is cringe deeply when the volleyball makes impact and sends him to the ground on his ass. Finn blinks incredulously while his pale face turns red. Then he _screams_.

At the boundary, I inspect the striped mark that the ball stamped on his face. Laughter pushes at my lips but I swallow it. Finn glares at me with watery green eyes and a lip jutting out, pouty. Tiny in his oversized pastel swim trunks, he could pass for a school kid who faceplanted on the playground at recess.

"Come on, sssssh, don't cry." I smooth a band-aid over the bleeding bridge of his nose, where the tan strip interrupts the pattern of his freckles.

"Ready?" Flaere looks awkward standing there all by himself, trying to avoid Sylphos' gaze.

"You don't have to, we can manage." I offer.

"I want to." Finn draws himself up straight with a sniffle.

"If you're sure..." He's already walking back to the court, defiant under the smirking looks of Damon and Sylphos.  
"Are you okay?" Matteo asks.

His answer is curt: "Fine, thank you, Matteo."

"You made my cute boyfriend cry, Damon." I point at him. "Now I'm gonna have to make _you_ cry."

"I would like nothing more than to see you try," He grins and calls through cupped hands, "Matchpoint!" Matteo serves overhand.

We rally furiously down to the wire.

"Who ordered the jumbo shrimp?" Damon taunts, lobbing the volleyball high over the net. I try to gauge it with my eyes: it's going to be out? It's going to be _in!_

"I-I got it!" Finn backpedals but he's never going to reach. _Unless_... I sprint towards him and scoop the petite soldier up on my shoulders just in time for him to bounce it.

"It's all yours!" I call to a surprised Flaere. He recovers fast to spring up and spike it right through Sylphos' defense attempt. The volleyball strikes the sand decisively.

"We win! We win!" I run towards Flaere with the giggling blonde on my shoulders. He slaps me a high five, then hops to give Finn one too. "Not bad, short stuff." Securing Finn by the skinny legs, I bounce him. He folds his arms contentedly on my scarlet hair.

"Hey, you didn't win," Damon throws that annoying little technicality into our celebration. "You just tied the game."

"Sure we did, you're jealous." I stick my tongue out at him.

"Uh, you have to win the third set with a two point lead."

"Now you're just making up words."

"You don't even know the rules!"

"Fuck your rules!" Flaere cuts his way into the argument by literally stepping between us. He drop-kicks the volleyball into the stratosphere. I have to shield my eyes and squint. It comes careening down to Earth like a meteor... Where it interrupts a certain sunbather's afternoon.  

"Hey, watch it!" Jun holds up a hand against the sand spray. Gasp! An amazing ass cruelly caged in a thong: I'll save it! I'm already lowering Finn to the ground with a quick pat of his fluffy curls.

"Good game; here's five dollars for a victory popsicle!"

"Rayce, I'm a full grown adult." I don't have time to answer because I'm on vacation and every second I spend talking is a second that I'm not having sex, and I plan to have a fucking _lot_. Trouble is, everyone had the same idea as me and all the cute submissives have had their fill of it. Now they just want to shop or eat or dumb stuff like that... Crazy, I know, right?

But don't worry: I have a _foolproof_ strategy. I grab a pair of red popsicles from the stand and sprint towards the beach babe. Jun rests his chin on his arms folded over a round beach blanket: you'd think because it was fashionable but really, it's two separate things: 1. He doesn't like other people in his personal bubble. 2. He needs a _big_ personal bubble. That huge mandala beach towel is a physical border wall.

Jun's face is shaded from the sun by the wide brim of an oversized straw hat and a pricey pair of white-rimmed sunglasses. His straight violet hair is carefully teased into beachy waves that my eyes are already surfing on... So I'm a little distracted when Damon plucks both treats out of my grip and slides up next to Jun like a beached mer-bro.

"Hey, gorgeous!" Damon offers him one. Jun deigns to accept it, making an impressed humming noise as he does. Those are _my_ brownie points! I settle for grumpily flopping down on the other side of him, which is giving me unhealthy fantasies about threesomes involving Damon. Well if it gets me that gorgeous ass... Jun wraps his plush lips around the popsicle. It stains them red as he bobs up and down, giving head. I watch a sticky bead of strawberry roll down the shaft and drip onto his knuckles. He knows he has both of our undivided attention when he smiles around the girth and abruptly gives it the guillotine with his teeth. Well _that_ breaks the spell - I clear my throat nervously and sit back.

"Babe, I'm here to make all your wishes come true." Damon doodles circles on his smooth shoulder. "Just name it, you got it."

"Hmmm..." Jun thinks about it for a second. "A boat," he says.

"A..." Damon is finally taken aback, blinking incredulously.

"A boat," Jun repeats. "Our own private cruise... Just you and me, sipping champagne and making love on the deck from sunset to sunrise... Doesn't that sound romantic?"  

"I'm on it!" Damon hops up and dashes away.

"You just said that to get rid of him, didn't you?" I smile knowingly.

"That's ridiculous," Jun chuckles, "I said it to get rid of both of you. Now shoo." He rests his chin on his arms while I lower my gaze over the smooth curve of his back. His pale, curvy peach is clothed only in a white string thong, just begging everyone to peel back the wrapper and take a bite. The string ties are so tempting. _.. He wouldn't notice if I..._ I reach out to pull on one.

"Don't touch that unless you can afford it," he says without even looking at me. My fingers retract against my palm. Jun is too stuck up to be any fun. Luckily, I know someone who is!

A curvy figure jogs across the beach in a one piece the color of a STOP sign, with a rescue board tucked under her arm. White corkscrew pigtails bounce along behind her.

"Ugh, Snow..." That catches Jun's attention if only long enough for him to moan about it. He glares over lowered sunglasses at the lifeguard. "What ridiculous costume is he wearing this time?"

"Sexy lifeguard. Wanna go listen to his safety lecture?" I grin.

"No thanks." Jamming his shades back in place, he resumes ignoring the rest of us _peasants_. "I don't take advice from fake people." I'd tell him to take his own advice, but apparently, he doesn't do that!

 

If you want a bunch of horny soldiers to sacrifice precious vacation time to listen to a safety demonstration, it's _definitely_ a good idea to be crossdressing as a sexy lifeguard while you do it. Men sprawl out in the sand around Snow, looking at him dreamily. I catch up just in time for the lecture,

"Halo-Halo Island is the largest island in Clear Republic and many consider it one of the world's natural wonders. But as beautiful as it is, it can also be incredibly dangerous!" the cute doctor chirps. "Health and safety is no day at the beach. Overexposure to UV rays can cause skin cancer and other lethal conditions." Smiles in the audience slowly start to fade. He flashes us a V with his fingers and winks. "So don't forget the broad spectrum sunscreen! You can lie to me but the sun is always watching!" His laughter sounds like wind chimes blown by the beachy breeze.

"Now," Snow selects a tube of sunscreen from the utility belt strapped tight around his generous hips. "Who wants to volunteer to demonstrate?"

" _Me!_ Me, me, me!" I almost trip over three rows of people to get to him.

"Gunner." Snow flashes me a heavy-lidded look. He tosses me the sunscreen and reclines on a beach towel on his belly. The back of his one piece is way more scandalous than the front, cut _loooooow_ to the dip just above his ass. Snow smiles coyly at my expression. He draws his long pigtails out of the way of his bare back. "Well don't keep us waiting."

"You got it, Doc." I grin. Clasping the tube between my thighs, I rub it like a penis, which gets a few laughs. I pretend to moan and toss my head back, pumping faster and faster until I flip the lid open with my thumb and squirt a stream of sunscreen all down Snow's back. A sultry gasp escapes his cherry red lips; he bites down on the bottom one.

"30+ only, boys..." He bats his fake lashes at them. "SPF, that is."

Placing a knee on either side of his hips, I smooth out the glitter sunscreen. It melts into his porcelain skin and leaves it shimmering like a pearl. Snow is still babbling on about good sunscreen practices. "-want to be thorough, especially with hard to reach places like your upper back." Speaking of hard to reach... I can't help but peel back the cloth of his one piece just enough to reveal one cheek of his dangerously pale rear, like a perfectly shaped snowball about to melt away in the summer sun. I'll save you, perfect snowball! It jiggles gratefully when I slap more sunscreen on it.

"Rayce!" Snow yelps in surprise.

"Sorry, I was just trying to be _thorough_." I grin at him. He props his chin up on on his palm, smiling in amusement.

"Well since you're such an expert on beach safety, why don't you remind the class what to do in case of a jellyfish sting?" Oh, oh, I know this one! I'm on my feet in a second.

"You get to pee on them, right?"

"Wrong!" Snow smiles radiantly.

"Wrong?" I echo.

"Actually, urine has the potential to make a jellyfish sting worse. If you are stung while in the water, get away from the area as soon as possible and make your way to the infirmary. It helps to thoroughly wash the sting with vinegar!" _Vinegar?_ Well that isn't nearly as dirty... "Which means you can put that away, Rayce." Snow beams at me.

"Oh." My shorts rustle as I pull them back into place.

Snow hops up on his feet and strikes a sexy salute.

"Please enjoy the rest of your vacation, troops, you earned it! Or as they say on Halo-Halo island: Mahalo and aloha!"

As the soldiers filter away, Snow dusts sand from his swimsuit.

"Hey, you're on vacation too you know," I remind him, "Relax... Hang out with me." I squeeze his rear playfully. He casts me a brief look, smiling with his big purple eyes.

"I know what your idea of 'hanging out' is."

"Uh, yeah, if you didn't know by now, then I'm not doing my job." I squeeze tighter.

"Actually, I'm busier than ever with everyone on holiday. Certain types of bacteria are on the rise when it's hot, wet and _sexy_..." He looks at me meaningfully.

"Certain types of..." My eyebrows knit. Then they rise. "Oh."

"Mmhm." He nods gravely. "And Damon's silly bet certainly isn't helping. Every dom in HQ is trying to win..."

"Wait what?" He looks surprised at my confusion.

"Except for you, apparently."

"What is it? I didn't hear anything about a bet. You said _all_ the doms were playing?" Suddenly self-conscious because if I'm not one of the doms, then I'm a sub and Rayce Gunner doesn't sub for _anyone!_

"Seeing who can get laid the most on vacation... They all pooled a bit of their vacation allowances for the cash prize. I told you it was silly."

"I could win that bet," I say, defensive, "What, you don't think I could win?"

"I thought you already knew, and that's why you were extra... err... _You._ "

"What, _that?_ That was just my regular..." My face goes hot; I scratch the back of my neck.

"Oh, I see." Snow smiles at me with his hands planted at his hips. "Gosh, you are just always on, huh? That's so cute." But it feels like a pity smile... I hate being patronized.

"Yeeeeep..." I say at length, already walking back towards the hotel.

"Where are you going?" he calls after me.

"To get in on this stupid bet!"

 

###

 

The sloped street leading back to the hotel is a gauntlet of souvenir shops almost impossible to weather without dropping cash... Exotic polished shells dredged up from the crystal blue ocean and tropical flowers, then the touristy stuff: gaudy Hawaiian shirts and novelty sunglasses. A tuna-shaped bottle opener because _everyone_ needs one of those. I find the greatest souvenir of all tucked away in a handmade jewelry store.

Matteo lifts a necklace from one of the displays, examining it as it slides through his fingers. His head is haloed by a cluster of wind chimes creating music in the island breeze. He looks perfectly out of place among the knick-knacks in his long tank top with a floral sugar skull printed on it. The length conceals the scandalous brief underneath. He can dress surprisingly conservative when his garbage fiance isn't telling him what to do...

"We'll take it!" I put an arm around a surprised Matteo's shoulder.

"You don't have to do that, Rayce, I was just looking..."

"And so was I." I grin, leaning in close to his face, but he doesn't let me get very close when he blushes and lowers his head. That leaves me to devour the sight of his honey-toned arms and bare legs, fantasizing about what's underneath... I can't wait to win that bet and use Damon's own fiance to do it!

"I wouldn't sell that piece to just anyone." A middle-aged shopkeeper interrupts my fantasy as he emerges from the depths of the shop, brushing his way through a curtain of cowrie shells. The clattering noise sounds like rain.

"Y-You wouldn't?" Matteo stammers. The shopkeeper's pale green hairline is receding like a low tide and his darkened sunglasses seem welded to his face..

"That's no ordinary trinket." He points at the shark tooth hanging from braided thread. "It's the tooth of Kamohoali'i: patron deity of sharks. It is said that whoever possesses the tooth may call Kamohoali'i their _kahu,_ or guardian. You..." His dark eyes twinkle as he looks Matteo up and down. "I think you were meant to have it." Matteo is starstruck by the old man's story.

"Really? _Me?_ " He looks down reverently at the tooth cupped in his hands.

"And just how much is this baby tooth, anyway?" Me, asking the real questions here...

"For that piece? A hundred dollars is a bargain."

"A hundred-" I'm about to raise my voice but Matteo has already slipped the necklace on over his head.

"I love it!" he exclaims. The rest of my words come out in an exasperated sigh. I narrow my eyes at the shopkeeper's greasy grin as I dig around for my wallet.

 

"Thanks for getting it for me, Rayce," Matteo hums happily, staring down at the shark tooth bouncing on his chest.

"What can I say except you're welcome?" I roll my eyes furtively. There goes Matteo again, falling all over himself to believe in outrageous fantasies and then calling it fate - just like his engagement to Damon! That reminds me... "Hey, I was looking at a brochure and it said something about a private spot by the shore called Star-Crossed Grotto." He ordered the damn lobster so he'd better put out...

"I should tell Damon about that." He thinks out loud. Missing the point, so I grab his wrist and twist him into my arms, whispering in his ear.

"Actually, I was thinking _we_ could go there. Skinny dipping." I wink. Matteo blinks, bright red in a second.

"Rayce I really shouldn't."

"But you want to." I bite down on his ear lobe teasingly.

"Mmmmm..." A conflicted, half-pleasured, half-annoyed noise forms in his throat. Finally, he slips both arms around my neck. "Okay... But only for a little while. Damon and I have plans." Ooof course they do... I'm good at not looking jealous, grinning instead.

"9:30 tonight. Don't be late."

 

###

 

Who started the party without me? The banquet room is full of soldiers seated at the long, communal wood tables heaped with food. Conversation and the clinking of drinks and cutlery fills the air while waiters dart expertly through the aisles.

"Aloha!" An attractive man tosses a lei over my head like a lasso, locking my head in a bubble of good aura. Alright, this is what I'm talking about!

There are dancers on the stage at the head of the banquet room, dressed in leis and grass skirts. One of them announces into the mic,

"We have a very special guest up here with us today; what's your name, sweetheart?" He glances back over his shoulder.

"Finn! Finn Seraphim!" Finn answers. That's my Finn up there! Amused, I take a seat at the table to watch. He wears a short grass skirt and a flower crown perched in his unruly mop of curls. The hula dancers teach him some moves: but he's cuter when he gets mixed up between his hand movements and footwork, shaking his little hips like his life depends on it. His pale face takes on a red tinge from the excitement more than the exertion. Finn notices me and waves in the middle of the dance.

"Hi, Rayce!" I just smile and give him a two-finger salute. It's nice to see him enjoying himself. My attention wanders to the more experienced dancers as they sway like the tides in the flickering light of the torches. Strong, oiled- up dancer's bodies glowing in the warm orange light... Okay, I'm into this. When the performance is over, they get a round of applause and Finn hops off the stage.

Doms have been sizing up my cute little Finn like a snack. I fix that quickly with a round of glares until they look away. At least I know why there are so many sharks in the water now... Just another sub on the hit list. I switch back to a smile when Finn gets to where I am. No space on the bench, no problem: I pull him onto my knee. He's so light, I barely feel his weight.

"You were great up there," I say, linking my arms around his waist.

"Thanks." He giggles. Finn eagerly shovels food on his plate. Meanwhile, I've just discovered something great about this grass skirt: he isn't wearing any underwear. I rub his crotch with my thigh between his legs. Finn moans softly.

A waiter walks this way with a platter of drinks balanced on his fingertips. I recognize him as one of the dancers and lean backward to block his path.

"Hey!" I say, beaming up at him.

"Hey." He stares down at me with stunning, sky blue eyes that contrast incredibly with his golden-brown skin. He has hair the color of the ocean and the shape of it too, azure blue waves that are white at the fluffy tips. Oh I am getting into this guy's pants.

"Rayce Gunner." I offer him my hand.

"Makaneo," he replies, shaking it briefly, "But you can call me Neo. So you're that famous Gunner guy..."

"Well I don't like to brag." I shrug modestly but there isn't an ounce of sincerity to it. "But here I am!" He narrows his eyes at me.

"Then what are you doing here stuffing your face instead of winning the war?"

"Winning wars is extremely stressful, okay?" I rear upright in my seat, offended, "But look, I'm not allowed to talk about that; I'm on vacation. You're an amazing dancer, by the way."

"Well thanks." He plants a tan hand on his hip.

I chat up the hot dancer, "Lucky you, on permanent vacation on this island, just dancing and partying every night... You must have the best job ever."

"You tell me," He smiles grimly. "I work for minimum wage prostituting my culture for the entertainment of drunk tourists so I can keep my tiny apartment on an island that my ancestors used to own, while random rich bozos buy 1,000 acre estates on a 400,000 acre rock."

"Livin' the dream..." I trail off. _Awkward._ I didn't ask for his life story, all I wanted was for him to giggle and nod a few times and then fall mouth-first on my cock, is that too much to ask? But instead the dancer goes on complaining,

"I had my ass grabbed three times today." That's when he notices my hand on it. "Four." Makaneo looks quickly from me to Finn on my lap and back at me. "Isn't he your boyfriend or something?"

"Yeah, your point being? Hey, this is probably going to sound offensive,"

"Oh boy..." Makaneo braces himself.

"But I really want to poke your bowl." I growl seductively. "Think you can make that happen?" The proposition doesn't surprise him - or even change the incredibly exhausted look on his face. He takes a very deep breath and asks at last, "Depends, are you a good tipper?"

 

###

 

We stumble into the dancers' breakroom; I kick the door shut behind us. Don't even bother locking it, too locked up with Makaneo as he digs his tongue down my mouth. His powerful legs are wrapped tight around my hips while I carry him. Why yes, I _do_ lift! I pin him back against the door. Neo moans,

"Raaayce..." I let a hand wander over his strong body before I latch down on his neck, planting sucking kisses there. The hickeys I leave him are extra dark so they show up against his dusky complexion. He lets out a tiny cry of mingled pleasure and pain. Gripping his ass again, I rub against his cock like I'm trying to create fire. Both of us are rock hard as the dry grass of his skirt rustles around our hips.

Makaneo pushes insistently at my chest until I drop him. He tugs his skirt slowly down over his muscular legs, grinning the whole time. When he straightens back up, my jaw drops. He's got a nice piece there.

"You ever tried Hawaiian pork?" His tone is so innocent..

"I don't sub for anyone," I tell him.

"Suit yourself." He shrugs. "The customer is always right..." There's a naughty glint in his eyes; he pushes me down on the bench. I watch eagerly, sitting aaaaall the way forward in my seat as he gives me a private show. He stomps his feet and sways his hips from side to side; in hypnotic figure eights. Makaneo's moves are more aggressive than the ones he showed off onstage, more passionate, more _hungry._ They were designed to highlight his strong legs and broad chest. Dropping low into a crouch on his haunches, he spreads his legs so I can stare straight into his lap.

"Enjoying the show?" Neo winks. He runs a hand over his tight abdominals, maintaining his balance perfectly all the while. His thighs don't so much as tremble even a little bit... Neo stops at his flat pecs and gently pinches a nipple between his fingers. I'm guessing that move isn't very traditional... His sky blue eyes almost seem to darken. They focus in on me like a predator; a shark that's just caught the scent of blood. And now he's lunging for the kill!

The dancer lands with a bob in my lap, arms around my neck while I seize his hips. He lashes out to grab a bottle that he brings close to his collarbone before squeezing. _Coconut_ \- the smell fills the air as aromatic oil spills over him in a slick waterfall. It pools in the space between us. Neo moans as I rub the coconut oil into his entrance, generously lavishing his pucker and cleavage with attention. I slip two fingers inside to test the waters. His ring has definitely been used - he probably gets a _lot_ of tips - but it gamely holds tight around me. Well, he passes the two-finger-test!

Transitioning Neo to my throbbing tip, I let him down slowly. The oil makes us slide together like it's just second nature: slippery and warm and amazing in all the right ways. Neo bottoms out, biting his lip. His arms around me have gotten tense; he clenches his strong thighs.

"You're big," he gasps.

"Too big?" I say sympathetically. I spread the rest of the coconut oil over his chest and taut stomach, marveling at the way it makes him shine like he's made of buffed bronze.

"It's a good big." His head rolls forward to rest on my shoulder. The flower crown perched in his blue hair gives me a heady whiff of hibiscus to start me off guiding him up and down on my shaft.

Neo plays along, gasping and moaning as I smash his prostate over and over and over- I'm suddenly distracted by the lei of brown beads he wears around his neck, each one the size of a walnut, all strung on black string. I reach out to touch it... Then snap it off his neck.

"Wh-What the fuck?" he complains when I lift him clean off just moments short of climax.

Turning Neo over on his hands and knees, I position him on the bench and hop on behind him, one leg on either side of the plank. Neo is still complaining as I tie a knot into the end of the lei so the beads won't fall off. Hey, he'll thank me when - oh, I'm already pushing one in experimentally.

"Th-That's not for-!" he squeaks. The polished bead stretches his entrance then just pops inside. Ooooh, that's addictive. "A-Ah... Ah! Oh god..." Neo is moaning and shaking his head as I thumb beads into his oil-slicked cavern. I pause every now and then to yank a few like a ripcord, just to keep his harassed prostate straining for release, but I push more than I pull until the entire lei is strung into him.

"Ready?" I languidly wrap the loose thread around my palm and grip it tight. I grin at Makaneo when he looks over his shoulder, flushed and panting hard. He nods, breathless. They come out in one smooth, breathtaking move, leaving him wracked in the clutches of an intense climax. A trickle of white falls over the edge of the bench, dripping slowly onto the floor. Neo's belly drops to the bench. He rears up when I grab his hips and wrench them back into place.

"You're not done?" There's a slightly desperate tone to his voice. He finds the answer when he looks over his shoulder at my fully erect cock.

"I haven't gotten my money's worth yet."

"I haven't even gotten my money yet," he complains.

Holding the dancer in place, I plow back into him, pounding his shapely ass like the brutal surf against Halo-Halo's sandy shores. He screams; I have my hand in his hair, yanking it back so he can tell the whole goddamn world!

"Fuck, oh _fuck!_ " I finally gasp out, pushing deeply inside him to release.

"Auwe!" He claws at the bench. We both nearly overbalance and fall off the damn thing, but I course-correct at the last second, pulling him and myself back into a sitting position. My limpening cock slips out of him in a trail of cum as we both catch our breath.

"You're paying double for that." He makes a futile attempt to fix his hair. I just laugh breathlessly.

Getting to my feet, I whip out my phone and turn towards the dancer on the bench.

"Just one last thing... A souvenir for the road?"

"For the waves, brother." Neo flashes me a toothy grin. He poses laid back with his muscular arms tucked behind his head, legs set apart. So he enjoys the attention after all...

"You ever think about getting into porn?" My phone camera clicks. If I wanna win this bet, I'm gonna need proof of eeeverything...

Is it just me or did the banquet hall get even rowdier? Late stage vacation drinking is setting in, boys! The waiters struggle to keep unruly soldiers under control - Neo and I duck a flying cocktail glass.

"Dammit..." he swears, adjusting his grass skirt as he rushes to help them. Meanwhile, I've found exactly who I wanted to see!

Damon glances up from his conquest. I stand across the table from him where he's rawdogging a drunk slut where the main course used to be. Would you believe that the drunk slut in question is Jun? His wavy purple hair hangs over his face like a curtain - whatever isn't bunched in Damon's fist anyway. Insensate giggling comes from behind it. Jun is soooo pricey until you get cheap liquor in him...

"So, you found the boat," I say, nonchalant.

"No." He shrugs. "But I found tequila and that was basically the same thing. You know how it goes with him... One tequila, two tequila, three tequila-"

" _Whore._ " I smirk. "Mind if I join you?"

"I'm nothing if not a good sharer." Already unzipped, I climb onto the table. Jun finds his way drunkenly into my pants and starts jerking on my cock.

"Greedy slut." I slap him playfully but he just enjoys it, opening his mouth to swallow me. "Soooo," I turn my attention back to Damon. "I hear things about a bet that I wasn't invited to. Afraid I might beat you?" His grin widens. If there's one thing he enjoys as much as screwing people literally, it's screwing them figuratively.

"I did you a favor, Gunner, you can't gamble. There's no way you could win."

"I want in," I say anyway. I slap a wad of cash down on Jun's smooth back, using him like a classy ivory table. Damon lowers his gaze to the money, tempted, but he doesn't touch it.

"Well, I _could_ let you join the pot late... But you'll have to triple that," he says. Swearing, I just wrench money out until it looks like enough, not even counting at this point. If I survive this vacation with a cent left in my wallet, I'll be shocked... "Alright, you're in." He sweeps the money off the whore's back. "Rules are simple: whoever gets laid the most before the vacation's up takes the pot. Any kind of sex counts but no rape."

"No rape? This coming from _Damon Black?_ " I look at him incredulously.

"What can I say? I wanted to give the rest of you a fair chance." He chuckles. "Besiiiides, I'm on vacation too. Second rule: pics or it didn't happen."

"Way ahead of you." I show him the picture I took of Makaneo. Damon whistles low.

"I'm gonna need you to send me that picture... For record-keeping purposes."

"This whole thing is your way of collecting vacation porn, isn't it? You know it's free on the internet, right?"

"Ha! I don't need it. I'm in the lead." There's a competitive smirk on Damon's face as he leans forward and quickens his thrusts inside Jun. I refuse to back down to this guy! I do the same on the other end and the noises coming out of poor Jun are starting to sound panicky, spitted mercilessly between us in a stamina contest. I feel the familiar tug of a climax and groan,

"Fuck..." I cum before Damon does, spilling seed in our shared slut's mouth.

"Don't look so pouty." Damon flashes me a mischievous look then - before I can resist - he leans forward the rest of the way and crushes his lips against mine. My eyes are wide open, blinking in surprise. I vaguely feel his tongue lapping my own before he pulls away again, licking his lips like a total sleazeball.

"Would you stop _kissing_ me?!" I demand. My face feels hot - not that I liked it or anything... Damon just grins. Finishing inside Jun, he lets that plump ass slide right off before taking a picture of it.

"Good luck! You'll need it!" Damon's laughter echoes back as he walks off.

I'll show him! I'll _win!_ Jun is tented facedown on the table like a used napkin. I grab his face by the jaw and wrench him upward to look at me, phone already out for the picture. On the screen, I see tears rolling down his cheeks. Surprised, I lower it again.

"Jun," I say quietly, wicking away moisture with my thumb.

"Wh-Why... Why..." It takes him a few tries to get the words in order. "Why does it hurt? What happened?" He rubs at his face with the heel of his palm, sniveling and dripping everywhere. An alcohol flush blazes red hot on his face and the pretty hair that he worked so hard on is mussed from Damon's manhandling. He's a shipwreck. "What happened?" Jun repeats. I don't have the heart to tell him... Mostly because I participated in it.  

The least I can do is skip the photo and put away my phone with a sigh. I help him off the table and onto the bench where he sits, swaying lightly. Once I get Finn to come over and help me with him, I hunt around for his clothes. _There!_ I zero in on the white string thong on the floor, but when I pick it up, half of it stays on the floor. Damon must have ripped it right off. So much for 'no rape', I should've known it was too good to be true... He'll take advantage of ambiguity wherever he can!  

"Did you find anything?" Finn asks me. He's holding a shell of coconut water near the drunk man's face so he can sip weakly through the straw.

"Nah." So I substitute my own shirt, placing it around Jun's shoulders. It's a flannel button down with a dark floral print. Not his style probably, but maybe he'll overlook that just this once... I was wearing it with the buttons undone but I button it up for him. It looks big, but cute I think, like he put on his boyfriend's too-big tee after a snuggle sesh - err... Not that I'm his boyfriend. The oversized shirt has the added bonus of covering everything that needs covering. Jun quietly grips the hem and stretches it over his crotch as far as it will go.

"You're gonna be okay," I assure him, stroking his light purple hair.

 

Just then, a large man barges into the banquet hall. A long midnight blue ponytail whips at the air behind him.

"It's happening!" he yells at the startled waiters. "Shutter the windows! Close the doors!" They rush to do his bidding. And no wonder because the beefy guy towers over everyone here. The tribal tattoo sleeves on his arms tell tales with ink that I can't pay attention to because I'm staring at his calves: those things looks like they could crush a coconut! Somehow, Makaneo thinks it's a good idea to get in this guy's way.

He stands in front of the sepia giant with his arms folded.

"You do this every time there's a storm. You are scaring the tourists." I expect him to get blown away in a storm of his own, but the giant man only looks down at him out of the corner of his eyes.

"You don't even like the tourists, Neo."

"And I like your stupid superstitions even less..."

"Hi, Rayce Gunner here," I inject myself into the conversation. "Can I just ask what the fuck is going on?" I'm not sure what I expected, but I don't get it when the big man leans close to me and bellows,

"MERFOLK!"

"Huh?" I blink incredulously.

"You heard me! I am the kahuna of this island, Koanui, and it is my responsibility to protect my people from merfolk!"

"He also happens to be my embarrassing dad," Neo sighs. I can just feel the blood draining from my face. This bodybuilding island kahuna is Neo's _dad?_

"We didn't have sex!" I blurt out, which just makes Koanui's thick blue eyebrows knit together. "And if we did, it wasn't amazing at all..."

Neo palms his face. "Oh my god."

"So yeah, mermaids, let's keep talking about that..." I mutter. Koanui glares severely at his son, but he continues,

"There are creatures that hunt in the waters around Halo-Halo Island... Most ordinary predators would not dare tangle with a tropical storm, but the merfolk use the storms as camouflage. Boats go out on nights like this, sometimes islanders, mostly foolhardy tourists like you."

"Wow, thanks."

"And they don't come back."

"That tends to happen when you go out sailing in a _storm._ " Makaneo says sarcastically.

"Sometimes, days or even months later, a lone survivor will wash ashore: a husk of the man he used to be."

"They were probably _traumatized_ by losing all their friends in a shipwreck!" Neo is exasperated. "When we specifically told them not to go out there!"  

"I've seen the merfolk myself! I was once the best surfer on the island, but I foolishly chased after a monster wave on a stormy night... I struck a rock and blacked out, and when I came to, a beautiful woman was looking down at me. She had hair like ocean weeds and eyes like a clear sky... But when she opened her mouth, I saw teeth as sharp as a snake eel's. I barely escaped with my life!"

"That never happened to you."  

"Then how do you explain _this?_ " Koanui lifts the leg of his bermuda shorts to reveal a deep, ugly scar over his knee, as if some... _thing_ tore into it with jagged teeth. Checks out. Gasps go up around the room.

"Oh my-" Neo kneads his temples and then gestures at the scar. "That's your _knee surgery scar!_ I was there!" The kahuna tosses the leg back down, huffy.

"If you're not going to take the merfolk threat seriously, how will you ever be a good kahuna?"

" _Consultant,_ " Neo corrects, "I'm going to become a consultant and get off this crazy island."

Koanui moans to the heavens, "What will I do with this boy?" Sounds like a family issue... The clock on the wall catches my attention: 9:30. Aaand I'm out.

 

###

 

"Ha, what storm?" I hold out a hand, daring the sky to rain on it. Clear as crystal. "That guy doesn't know what he's talking about. What do you think, Matteo? Matteo?" No answer from my slender partner. He walks beside me on the dark dirt path, staring pensively at the ground. Palm trees wave overhead. The leaves look like creepy cloaked figures in the dark.

"Hey," I nudge him to get his attention.

"Huh? Oh, sorry... It's just, all this talk about disappearances and merfolk is pretty spooky."

"Don't tell me you believe in that crap," I chuckle.

"Wait, you don't?"

"Come on, Matteo, what are we, _twelve?_ There's no such thing as mermaids."

He stops dead in his tracks and turns to face me, arms crossed over his chest. "Hold on," he says, "We're fighting a war against vampires, and _mermaids_ is a bridge too far for you?"

"I'm just saying, we see vampires all the time, who's ever seen a mermaid?"

"Koanui did," he says, stubborn.

"Koanui saw an _orthopedic surgeon_. You've gotta stop believing in fairy tales." Especially the kind that put me out a hundred dollars... Slightly annoyed by the reminder, I keep walking.

"And what is that supposed to mean?! Rayce!" Matteo jogs to catch up.

The dirt path leads us to a secluded rock pool by the shore. Just beneath the surface of the clear water, chubby pink and orange starfish dot the black rocks in an underwater galaxy. An alien octopus scuttles into a crevice out of sight.

"It's beautiful..." Matteo intones.

"You know what would make it even more beautiful?" I step out of my denim shorts and wink at him. Matteo's face flushes as he looks me up and down. I run a hand through my short scarlet hair, puffing my chest a little. Hey, just because I'm a dom, doesn't mean I don't like compliments. And the best kind are the ones he can't even say out loud because he's so dumbstruck...

Matteo hastily wiggles out of his tank top, too eager to spare the time for a striptease. But just as the top falls to the ground, an expression of guilt crosses his face. He shivers in his swim brief in the cold night air, drawing his arms around himself.

"Rayce, I shouldn't..." This again. Maybe the cold and dark reminded him of his fiance... What he needs is a push in the right direction - so I bet tackling him into the rock pool will work even better! Matteo's scream is drowned out as we plunge through the frigid portal to another dimension. For a moment, everything is frozen: the bubbles streaming through the water, Matteo's black hair suspended in zero G... I find his lips: parted and tempting me. _In this universe, we're in love, right?_ Kissing him sets it all back in motion.

We sink, limbs and tongues entangled. Which one of us is the anchor dragging the other down? I feel his fingers in my hair while mine go directly for his skimpy swimsuit. Peeling it off, I let it float back to the surface while I wrap my arms around Matteo's nude body. His dark hair blossoms around his face as he stares at me with those eyes deeper than the ocean. He exhales a mouthful of bubbles.

We break the water headfirst, gasping. Matteo dips back under until only his intense blue gaze is visible above the surface. He drifts this way; I tread backwards until the bare skin of my back touches damp rock. His legs wrap firmly around my hips, arms around my neck like a lei. I run my hands down his sides, bringing them to rest on his hips.

"Star Crossed Grotto..." He laughs quietly. "Do you think there's a reason we ended up together here tonight?" I squeeze his hips, grinning.

"I know mine, what's yours?"

Matteo moans softly as I make out with his neck, kissing and suckling. He tilts his head to a side to give me more room to work. His eyes drift shut.

"Damon's been so caught up with his latest game..." he complains like he's commiserating with a hairdresser. "I mean, it's not the sex that bothers me - well, that too - but it's just _we_ were the ones who were supposed to be having all this great vacation sex but now that we're here, he won't even touch me and it makes me wonder if I'm just _maintenance work_ to him... Maybe he doesn't actually think I'm interesting anymore..." Rambling. Typical sub: overthinking everything. Damon isn't _bored_ of Matteo, he's just distracted by everything else on this sexy island... Not that I'm going to tell Matteo that. "And now he's taking _pictures_ of them? Who even does that- Wait, are you taking a picture of me?"

I slowly look at him over the top of my phone. "Noooooo..."

"Oh my god." His eyes widen angrily. "You're in on it too. I thought you were the only half-decent dom on Halo-Halo who wasn't playing this childish game!"

"I'm not!" My argument was flimsy to begin with, but the sound of the shutter clicking is not helping...

"Ugh!" Matteo pushes away from me in disgust.

"Hey, you snuck out here with me and that makes you at _least_ as terrible as I am!" I'm not letting him go just like that, not when I'm so close! I drag him down with me. Flailing desperately, he surfaces for only a few seconds to cough and sputter before sinking again. Underwater, he can't scream, and that's _convenient_.

The loud blaring of a fog horn saves him. Matteo gasps for air as we come up.

"Enjoying yourself?" I can't believe what I'm seeing, but there it is: Damon on the deck of an honest to god boat! _Caught in the act._

"What the hell?!" I demand, wrapping my arms around Matteo while he clings to my chest in embarrassment.

"I found a boat after all!" Damon grins wide. "So if you would get your tentacles off my fiance, we're going mermaid hunting!"

 

###

 

Okay, so when I called it a 'boat', I used that word extremely loosely! This has to be the most disgusting, salt-encrusted tuna can I've ever seen in my life. And it smells like one too: more 'fishing boat' than 'cruise ship'. Damon and I walk across the deck, if you insist on calling it that.

"Don't tell me you believe all this merfolk bullshit too..." I mutter.

"Maybe I do and maybe I don't." Damon says noncommittally, "But if it _is_ true, don't you want to be the guy who boned a mermaid on vacation?" He has a point.

"Well..."

"Too bad, because it's gonna be me." He cuts me off with a sleazy grin, flipping out his phone. "And that bet? Done and done."

"What about the storm?"

"Are you kidding? We have the best crew on the seven seas! I mean look, we have Sylphos and he's a _Marine_." Sylphos lays back on a deck chair, reading from a holo-reader.

"A Marine on _vacation_ ," he corrects.

"Flaere is our navigator," Damon goes on as we join the ginger by the railing.

"You're holding it upside down." I point at the map. Flaere looks immediately embarrassed.

"Who needs this thing anyway?" he says, "I learned a really neat sailing trick. First you hold your hand up to the stars, with your thumb at a right angle to your index finger..." He demonstrates, holding his hand up flat against the night sky. I mimic him and close one eye to see better.

"Then what?"

"Um, that's as far as I got in the movie." He falters. "But I'll know when I see it, right?" I'll try not to be obvious about rolling my eyes...

"Heeeey, here comes our ship doctor." Damon distracts me. "I think you've met the lovely Snow Coolidge..." Snow smiles and raises a very responsible champagne flute of apple juice. His fake pigtails whip convincingly in the wind.

"Draw me like one of your French girls!" he says.

"I don't remember the part in Titanic when Jack found out Rose had a dick." I smile at him.

A little blonde head bursts through the door to the engine room.

"We're taking on water!" Finn cries.

"Yeah, it does that sometimes. Bail it every twenty minutes and we should be fine..." Damon waves off his inconvenient concerns. Then a naughty smile crosses his face. "Hey, close your eyes for a second." Finn buries his face in his hands on cue. Damon produces a folded paper hat from his back pocket and snaps it open before placing it lightly on Finn's head like a crown.

"For the cutest first mate in the world."

"Aww, Damon," he giggles.

"Now get back to bailing." He dismisses Finn with a pat on the shoulder.

"Stay away from my boyfriend." I stand in front of Damon. He just simpers at me mockingly.

"Oh, I'm sorry. My fiance, your boyfriend, I thought we were all sharing here..." He leans over me just to make me as uncomfortable as possible. "And I told you: I'm _really_ good at sharing. Why don't you keep your whore mouth shut and just be grateful that you're here at all, _Gunner?_ " With that, Damon returns to the wheel of the boat: not because he knows how to sail it, but because he just has to be the self-proclaimed boss of everything, even this fish-entrail-soaked dinghy bobbing in the middle of the ocean.

Oh fuck him... I notice Jun on the bow of the boat, hunched over the railing. My oversized shirt billows from his thin frame like a flag.

"Feeling better?" I slide into the space beside him. Jun takes a glance at me out of the corner of his brown eyes, but I'm not worth any more than that in his mind. He's holding a glass by the rim - whiskey, neat - but I don't say anything about it. Swirling it around pensively, he takes a sip.

"You know, I used to have a _yacht_ ," he laments.

"Well now, you have something even better: Us!" I flash him a winning smile.

"I'll try to contain my excitement."

Something catches Jun's attention; I follow his gaze to a line of bobbers floating in the water. They seem to stretch in a circle around the island.

"A sea net," says Jun. As the boat glides over it, we hear a strange, mechanical hum. "An _electrified_ sea net."

"What do they need something like that for?"

"Jellyfish, sharks..." Jun mulls into the bottom of his glass. He takes a long sip. "Man-eating mermaids?" I turn back to Halo-Halo Island as the wind whips my red hair around my face. We can't possibly have been sailing for that long, so why does it look so far away...

It's like we sailed into a whole new ocean. The ship bucks on a wave.

"Jun!" I catch the slender engineer before he flips right over the railing. Sure enough, Flaere yells from his lookout,

"We've got turbulence!"

"This isn't the fucking air force!" Sylphos joins him there. His eyes widen.

"Relax, it's just some bad weath-" Damon is saying when Sylphos shoves him out of the captain's cabin and takes the wheel. That's bad... That's gotta be bad. He spins it sharply with a strike of his palm. I stumble over the deck as the bow meets the next breaker at an angle that makes it pitch violently but - amazingly - the boat doesn't roll over. But if it had slapped the side of the boat head on... we would all be underwater right now. Sylphos grabs the radio and shouts into it.

"Mayday! This is the Blue Triggerfish, sailing north of Halo-Halo Island! We're caught in heavy weather-" He's cut off by another wave shoving the boat. Clouds appeared out of nowhere, when the sky was picturesque just minutes ago. Sheets of rain. The rolling of the boat takes me and Jun down, coughing. Finn pops up from below deck. His blonde hair is slicked to his head with seawater.

"I don't think I can bail all that water!" Then he's really not going to like that monster wave cresting over the side of the boat.

 _Gasping for air_ \- I don't even know where I am when I come around, but I'm surprised it's still on the boat. _Jun,_ My hand comes down on the spot beside me - there's no one there. Protest wracks my entire body as I try to turn over, but when I try to move a leg, it _shrieks._ Pain jolts up my leg and drags a scream from my throat. _What the_ \- My eyes widen when I see the fishing harpoon skewered through the fleshy part of my calf. _No, no, no,_ I immediately just want to unsee it. Like if I blink a couple of times and look away, somehow it will disappear. I don't have time for this oversized splinter!

It's so quiet. Are storms always this quiet? All I hear is the creaking of the boat and the drumming of rain on the deck. I see Flaere lying still on his back, splayed out like a starfish at the bottom of Star Crossed Grotto. No sign of Finn. I crane my trembling neck to the captain's cabin. Sylphos hangs, unconscious, over the wheel. His braids sway like cowrie shell curtains.

"Rayce?" _That_ sound is impossibly loud. I turn to see Matteo, shaking from the cold or the terror, I don't know, on his hands and knees. "Your leg..." His gaze darts quickly to my leg. "Oh god, your leg..." And then back to my face for reassurance.

"W-We're going to be okay." But I've already caught sight of the huge wave looming over the boat. It makes all the others look like a dip in the kiddie pool. White foam forms at the lip of the wave curling into a snarl. There's no way this sardine tin is going to survive that.

"What are you looking at-"

"Don't." I stop Matteo before he can turn around. "Just look at me." He puts a hand over mine on his cheek. Tears gather in his eyes. I smile because it's all I can do for him.

"Just look at me."  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shore Leave is a 3-part summer special for my amusement and hopefully yours too! If you do read The Human Rayce, this is non-canon. And if you don't, this adventure was intentionally written to be accessible to everyone anyway! Hope you enjoyed your brief tropical vacation, and if you did, don't forget to leave a kudos and comment (I accept anons and yes, I do reply)! As with all my works, you can peep my update schedule on my profile [here](https://archiveofourown.org/users/KassiopeiaX/profile).
> 
> \- Kassiopeia


	2. Pele Says DON'T DIE

I stir, blinking until the blurry shapes in my vision take the form of a bright red crab. It has one disproportionately oversized claw and a smaller one which darts constantly from the black sand to freakishly clacking mouthparts and back again. Wait, _black sand?_

"We're not on Halo-Halo anymore, Toto," I mutter to the crab. Also, why am I talking to a fucking crab. Blue - the bluest water you've ever seen - laps at an endless black coastline, smooth like a sheet of glass. It's peaceful. Almost too peacefuuuul - no wait, _the ship!_

"Matteo!" I yell; it's just instinct. The ocean air carries my voice away, unanswered. There's no sign of the ship or the others. It's all coming back to me like a bad aether trip: the mermaid tales, Damon's tin can boat, the _storm_ and-  I look down at my leg. The harpoon greets me like the one night stand in your bed who somehow went from a 10 to a 2 in 5 hours...

"Noooo," I groan, grabbing hold of the shaft. That thing's gotta come out, but I definitely don't want to pull it out in the opposite direction that it came in - it has a barbed end. No, maybe I could pull it right on through. Lucky for me, the shaft seems to be even across the length. _Man up, Gunner, you just gotta do it._ I steel myself and take hold of the harpoon with both hands. _One... Two... Three!_ And I just. Didn't pull at all. What if it's like in the movies when the thing that tore you open is also the only thing keeping all your blood _inside your body?_ I am not bleeding out on this fucking beach! Releasing the harpoon with a groan, I prop myself back on the sand. My gaze slowly moves to the crab again. It hasn't budged an inch, like this is dinner and I'm the movie.

"Fuck off, I'm not dying," I tell it. A wet ball of sand oozes between its mandibles and falls to the beach like a hairball. "Gross." I narrow my eyes. I have bigger priorities: finding the guys and then a way off this island. But first, I find a piece of driftwood that seems strong enough to support my weight and use it to limp across the beach. Sweat rolls down my forehead from both the effort and the sun beaming down at me, full glare. I can't believe the weather has the nerve to be this sunny just hours after it literally shipwrecked us on a deserted island! Shielding my face, I squint at our new prison. The black coast morphs into a lush tropical jungle further inland, but the most striking thing about the island's silhouette is a tall, narrow mountain in the center like an inverted funnel.

That's when I hear the _voice_.

"WELCOME ALL, TO ELE ELE ISLAND!" A booming, female voice makes the ground shake so hard that the stick slips out from under me. I go down with a cry, looking around wildly but I don't see where it's coming from. "I AM PELE, THE GODDESS OF THIS ISLAND AS WELL AS YOUR HOST, BUT YOU ARE NOT GUESTS HERE. YOU ARE CHALLENGERS. OBEY MY ORDERS. ENTERTAIN ME! BUT ONLY THE LAST MAN STANDING WILL LEAVE WITH HIS LIFE..." Struggling to my feet again, I call out in the general direction of the sky,

"Oh no, _not this_. Not today! I am not fighting my friends to the death for the amusement of some holy brat!" ...Except maybe Damon; that I'd do for free.

"YOU HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO OBEY." Suddenly, the mountain belches black smoke. It momentarily blots out the sun as the blood drains from my face. Of course. It's a _volcano_. "OR I WILL HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO BURY YOU ALL IN A TOMB OF FIERY WRATH!"

"Fiery wrath. Got it."

"EIGHT GO IN, AND ONLY ONE WILL COME OUT... GOOD LUCK, CHALLENGERS." Wicked laughter echoes over the beach and then it's quiet again.

This isn't even fair: I'm starting this so-called 'challenge' with a handicap! And I wouldn't want to compete with those guys on a _good_ day... But they wouldn't fall for this, right? Teamwork: it's in our training, even I know that, and I was barely paying attention. Right now, I'm on my own as I limp into the humid forest.

This place isn't so bad compared to the Forests of Decay - at least it isn't, well, _decaying -_ but that doesn't make the sweat on my brow and my clothes clinging to my body any less annoying. I clutch my stomach when it grumbles a complaint at me. What I'd give for one of those shitty military ration packets right now... I hear monkeys screeching in the trees. When I look up, I see bright red, furry bodies climbing and leaping between the branches. They have to be eating something right? Squinting against the sunlight, I follow them to the trunk of a coconut tree. A cluster of wild coconuts hangs between the fronds like a delicious jungle chandelier, but it's so high up. I mean, I could _totally_ climb it, it's just my leg...  

I try whacking the tree trunk with my walking stick instead, making the fronds shudder. I focus on a loose coconut on the end that seems to be wiggling just the right way... Once, twice- come to papa! It snaps off and hits the ground with a hollow-sounding thud. _Jackpot!_ But before I can limp towards it, a furry creature leaps from the bushes and scoops it up. A bushy red face with round eyes turns to look at me. The monkey bares sharp teeth and screeches.

"Hey, get your own!" I golf-swing a rock at it with my walking stick but it dodges, fleeing into the bushes with a flick of a blood red tail. "Great," I mumble, leaning heavily on the stick. Suddenly I have a craving for bush meat instead...

Just then, a scream interrupts the jungle white noise. I raise my stick threateningly, just in time as a sprinting figure bursts through the leaves and crashes right into me. We both go down.

"Rayce!" Soft hands capture my face and then I'm looking up into Snow's wide purple eyes. "You're alive!"

"And so are you!" I laugh with relief. Just who I wanted to see: a _doctor!_ Then I remember, "What were you running from?" I look over his shoulder, but nothing follows him through the jungle flora.

"I-I thought I saw something." He scans the trees with me.

"It was probably a monkey," I mutter, "Those little scumbags are everywhere."

"You're right, this place has me a little on edge," he says. He notices my leg and his eyes widen. "Uh, Rayce? Don't look now, but..."

"I know, I know," I sigh. "Anything you can do about it?" At that, he lets out a nervous titter.

"Of course there is! In a sterile OR with scrub nurses, a blood bank on standby and general anesthesia... I miss anesthesia so much," he moans.

"Oh, we just call it vodka." I grin.  

"We can't leave it there." Snow's worried eyes dart over the fishing harpoon. "Who knows how long it will take for us to get rescued? It's going to get infected and then you'll die gripped with fever in a pool of pus and agony."

"Gee, give it to me straight, doc," I joke but my nervous laughter gives me away.  

"There's only one option..." Snow helps me to my feet so I can limp along after him.

He leads me to a pool of water surrounded by bright red jungle flowers.

"It's a good thing I found this place," Snow mentions, "The water here is potable." While I cup a palmful of cool water to my lips, Snow positions me on a rock and props up my leg for a better look. He studies the entry wound, then moves his head to the other side and cringes at the exit wound, and the harpoon shaft stained red. Eh. The shock value wore off for me.

"Ready?" he asks.

"For what, exactly?" In response, Snow grabs the harpoon with both hands and tugs sharply.

 _Screaming._ I'm screaming at the top of my lungs, eyes squeezed shut because he just- he just _yanked it out_ like a meat skewer! But after the initial pain wears off, my leg just throbs with a dull rhythmic ache. My screaming fades slowly as I peek between the slivers of my eyelids. Instead of the spectacular geyser of blood and viscera I expected to see, there's just some blood running down my calf, staining the rocks. Nothing I haven't seen before in the army.

"Oh thank god," Snow lets out a breath of relief, and he's not even religious!

"Thank _god?_ You could've killed me!"

"But I didn't! Isn't that lucky?" He's already busy cleaning the wound with clean water and patting it dry with flat, wide leaves. I glance at the bloody harpoon on the ground and shudder. So I decide to look at Snow instead as he works and find  him sharpening a twig with a rock. Next to him is a suspicious tangle of green fibers he stripped from a palm frond.

"Oh no. No, no, no-" I rear up, scooting backward. "You are _not_ giving me stitches."

"The sooner I can stitch you up, the better if we want to have any chance at avoiding infection," Snow argues.

"I think I'll take my chances with the pus and agony!"

"I won't let that happen. Come on, Gunner, last I checked, I was a military doctor, not a pediatrician... So man up." Snow might be young and adorable and have a habit of running around in cute dresses, but he doesn't dick around with saving lives...  I know he's good at it. I stare at the pointy stick, just imagining- _no, don't imagine it!_

"Fine," I say before I change my mind.

Clenching my teeth, I look up at the trees, trying to find something, anything to distract myself with, but that's kind of hard when it feels like a white hot, angry worm is burrowing through my leg and torching everything it finds! A ragged cry escapes my throat; I cut off another by biting my lip.

"INTERESTING CHOICE." Pele's voice fills the air again. Snow glances up worriedly. "HEALING A STRONGER OPPONENT INSTEAD OF TAKING ADVANTAGE OF HIS INJURY." Not helping.

"Just ignore her, she does that sometimes," I mutter.

"Y-Yeah... You know..." The horrible tunneling paused. "There is one drug we could try."

"Then what are you waiting for?"

"I don't have it." Snow shakes his head and touches my chest. "But all the ingredients to make it are right inside you."

"My heart?"

"No, Rayce, your pituitary gland." He pats me encouragingly. "When properly... Stimulated, it produces endorphins that are similar in function to painkillers."

"Stimulated, huh?" I look at him knowingly. Snow smiles and curls his fingers around an invisible cock, jerking it off.

"It would be purely scientific, of course." It's worth a shot. And hey, jerking off _always_ sounds like a good plan to me. "I would help you out, but I won't have a hand free."

I fetch my cock from inside my pants, stroking it casually to erection.

"You can still help me, even if you don't have a hand free." I grin at Snow sleazily. He bats his lashes at me.

"If you die of infection, it's your own fault, you know." He takes a few steps away, hands on his hips as they sway from side to side. When he bends over, his red one piece stretches taut, making that amazing ass look like a cherry-flavored snack. Pale hands dance flirtatiously over his legs as he slowly straightens up again, then turns around to let me watch them continue their journey over his hips and waist. He grips both fake tits, pouting as he caresses them seductively.

"Snow..." I moan, quickening my pace. I actually forgot I was in pain, distracted by the warm, fuzzy signals coming from down there for a change. Snow slips his thumbs under his shoulder straps and tugs them off agonizingly slowly. I'm locked on now as the red swimsuit _peeeeels_ from gorgeous, virgin skin... Heavy breasts cling to the fabric as long as possible until they just - pop! - free. My eyes widen.

Snow makes another seductive face, biting his lower lip. He captures his rosy pink nipples between two fingers each and scissors them.

"Oh god..." A spurt of pre trickles over my knuckles. Satisfied with the reaction, Snow returns to my side. Hey, what happened to my striptease - oh right - there's a gaping hole in my leg. He doesn't bother covering up again as he continues his work. "Masturbation and a sexy topless nurse... Why isn't this standard procedure, again?"

"I can just imagine the paperwork." Snow chuckles slightly.

I lay back to finish what I started, slickening my big tool as my eyes drift shut. The warmth numbs out my thoughts, my feelings until it's all I can focus on. The highlights of Snow's performance run on repeat in my head until I finally blow my load, panting.

"All done!" I hear Snow say cheerfully.

"That was fast." The wound is cinched shut with bright green stitches. I wiggle my toes and bend my knee, testing my range of motion. Snow helps me stand.

"It should do for now... But we still need to find a way off this island as soon as possible."

"THERE IS ONLY ONE WAY OFF THE ISLAND," Pele reminds us. "AND IF YOU WON'T COMPETE, THEN YOU SHALL BE DISQUALIFIED." _Disqualified?_ Well _that_ isn't ominous at all... I hear a familiar chattering noise.

"A-ha!" I point accusingly at the monkey at the edge of the clearing. "Back for more, chickenshit primate?! Well I'm ready for you this time!" I gesture at my leg.

"Do you always talk to animals?" asks Snow, concerned.

"Only when they're assholes!" I run - okay, more like shamble at an accelerated pace - toward the monkey in an attempt to scare it off. It hops back into the bushes - ha! "That'll show you." I almost turn around when I hear it: a low, menacing growl. That doesn't sound like a monkey... Sure enough, red-orange eyes peer out at me from the darkness behind the leaves.

"Rayce, that's the thing! The _thing!_ " Snow sounds terrified. I back up slowly... Carefully... But this is not about to go at my pace as a huge animal lunges from the foliage. I fall back on my ass with a small scream. Four massive paws land in front of me. It looks like a huge panther with burning eyes and a body made of glowing coals cobbled together. As it bares dark teeth in a growl, a wave of heat washes over me. That has to be one of Pele's monsters! I scramble backward, stumbling to my feet.

"Rayce, do something!" Snow cowers behind me as the beast prowls this way. My walking stick - I scoop it up in desperation.

"Stay back!" I wave it at the panther, but that doesn't stop it from pouncing. "Snow, _run!_ "

I hear him shrieking as I plant my foot and swing with all my strength, deflecting the panther just enough to avoid having my face shredded by those sickle claws. The smell of burning wood - the driftwood scorches on impact with the burning beast's skin and abruptly bursts into flames.

"Dammit, dammit!" I curse, trying to beat the fire out, but it's no use. My eyes dart to the pond. Meanwhile, the panther is swinging around for a rematch. I fling the flaming driftwood into the pond and jump out of the way in the same movement. Pain shoots up my leg, making me cry out - I'm in no condition for this fight right now! The panther whisks around with a whip of a molten tail and bounds roaring back.

"Rayce, take this!" Snow holds the bloodied harpoon into the air. Metal: now we're talking! He tosses it to me just in time as the panther tackles me to the ground.

Gleaming fangs lock down around the metal shaft. I grit my own teeth, holding it back but just barely. A gleaming lava globule forms at the corner of those foaming lips. I move my head just in time to hear it sizzle against the ground instead of through my forehead. My thigh accidentally brushes the predator's leg and it's like touching a hot stove. I feel the heat through burned cloth.

"No, no, no!" I gasp. Using my good leg, I brace a foot against the beast's belly and kick hard. When I get up, half the damn sole of my shoe comes off in sticky strings of melted rubber... _I can't keep this up._ I realize as the panther and I circle each other warily. Over its shoulder, I spot the pond where my charred walking stick still floats - wait, that gives me an idea.

Raising the harpoon, I let out a battle cry and charge right at it. Feline eyes flare angrily and silver fangs are already out, but I feint at the last moment, darting around it to put my back to the pond. When the panther whips around and pounces, I just duck.

I hear sizzling: _victory!_ Sure enough, the panther is mired in the pond as steam rises in clouds. It splashes in a clumsy attempt to get back to shore but its back legs are already starting to cool and lose their glow like spent charcoal. They solidify and stop moving altogether. A curtain of lava spills from its lips, hissing as it meets water. The surface seethes angrily with bubbles.  

Jamming the harpoon into the panther's rocky forehead, I force it under until the molten glow fades, leaving behind a grey husk like a statue at the bottom of the pond.

"Lights out," I mutter.

"Nice one liner." A new voice behind me. "Mind if I borrow it?" Something makes impact with the back of my head.

 

###

 

My head _aches._ When I come to, the world swims in and out of focus. I make out noises first, confusing without context: soft moaning and quiet whimpers. Panting. Wait, no, I know those sounds: it's sex and I'm not getting any! Damon. Ugh. The first thing I see is his cocky smile as he pumps in and out of Snow's mouth. Damon has a hand tangled in the doctor's wig, using it as leverage to speed up or deepen his thrusts depending on how exactly he wants to torture him. Snow's eyes are squeezed shut as he just takes the abuse. It's way easier than arguing with Damon, anyway... No, that's _my_ job. I try to move, but my hands are tied together; I fall back against the tree trunk behind me.

"Hey look, your hero has awakened!" he says with taunting fanfare, ruffling Snow's pure white hair. He finishes up inside the doctor's throat and forces him to swallow before casually disposing him like a used condom. Snow draws himself into a tight little ball, pulling his swimsuit back up shamefully.

"What are you doing?" I demand as Damon wrenches me to unsteady feet.

"What am I doing?" He looks at me innocently. "Didn't you hear Pele? Only one of us can leave alive, and it sure as hell isn't going to be you." He's forcing me forward, inch by inch, toward a dizzying drop. From here, those coconut trees I thought were so tall look like embroidery in a carpet.

"Don't do this!" I struggle. "Pele is just trying to pit us against each other! We're stronger together!"

"Is that what you tell Matteo?"

"I can think for myself, Damon." Speak of the devil. We both turn to see Matteo emerging from the jungle. He fashioned a spear out of a sturdy stick and a sharp rock, holding it directed threateningly at Damon. "Only one of us can leave alive? Then are you going to throw me off a cliff too?"

"Babe, don't be ridiculous." While Damon tries to cajole him, Snow crawls slowly towards me. I keep my face as neutral as possible as he unravels my bindings. "You're my plus one!" Damon smiles winningly.

"That's not how it works. Rayce is right, we have to find a way out of this _together_."

"Come on, Matteo, you know me." He places a finger on the tip of Matteo's spear, lowering it carefully. "I could never hurt my soulmate..." Matteo's deep blues get wide and sentimental.

"Really?" The spear drops all the way, but just as soon as it does, Damon smacks him across the face. Matteo lands on the ground with a gasp and Damon easily scoops up the weapon.

"Just kidding." When he turns around, he has to contend with my fist. Punching Damon feels better than most things: pizza, love, sex... Well maybe not that last thing. He reels from the blow, gripping his aching jaw.

"Ugh! You're gonna pay for that!" I narrowly dodge the thrust of his spear and grab the shaft, tugging on it sharply. For once, I actually break his hold. His eyes widen as I spin it back around and swipe. Damon goes down with a ragged red line torn into his chest. He lifts his head just in time to see me charging in with the spear raised over my head like a javelin.

"No!" But I don't find my mark when Matteo tackles me. "Don't hurt him!" he begs.  

"You have _got_ to be kidding me!" I push him off - my window opportunity is already closed, but that's fine, I'll just break open another... Damon and I pace the clearing, glaring at each other. But before either of us can make a move, a projectile whizzes through the air and strikes a tree, missing Damon by an inch. He looks at it, shocked, to find an arrow buried in the wood. That's enough heat for him as he abruptly spins around and makes a getaway through the trees. Never underestimate Damon's ability to run for his life...

"Pussy!" I shout a taunt after him. The whistling of wind and then three more arrows bury themselves in the ground near my foot. "Holy shit-" Cursing, I'm already hopping away from the spot on one foot. Damon had the right idea! I grab Matteo's hand and yank him along. "Come on, we gotta go!"

"W-Wait for me!" Snow trails behind helplessly. We lose ourselves in the woods, but it doesn't look like our pursuers have lost us. I hear a rustling in the leaves and see a shadow following us through the treetops, swinging from branch to branch as easily as one of the jungle monkeys.

"Shit-!" So I'm not exactly looking where I'm going when I crash right into Damon again. An arrow lodges into the ground between my legs, dangerously close to something very, very sensitive... This isn't funny anymore! I scoot back frantically until my back hits a tree trunk. The assailant in the trees leaps down, landing softly behind us to block our escape.

"Flaere?" I look up at the orange-haired soldier in surprise. Damon throws a punch, but that was a rookie mistake. Flaere deflects effortlessly and returns the favor, sending him crashing back into a tree. Damon slides down clutching his stomach.

"Damon, no!" Matteo squeals. He squeezes his eyes shut when the next punch comes hurtling towards his face. Flaere stops just short of Matteo's nose and whispers,

"Sorry, Matteo..." He pushes him gently to the ground instead.

"Too easy!" Sylphos emerges from the foliage next, holding a handmade bow. "You watching, Pele? That one was for you!" He kisses his fingertips and holds his hand up in the air.

"MMMM...."

"You're on _her_ side now?" I say indignantly.

"It's nothing personal, Gunner." This time, he nocks an arrow and aims it at my head. "But I am _not_ dying on a rock in the middle of the fucking ocean; I've got a war to win."

I swallow heavily. "And I don't?"

"You treat it more like a frat party." He shrugs.

Flaere brightens up and bends his elastic body backward, arching his back while placing his hands on the ground. His legs flip over one at a time in a breezy walkover; he pops up by Sylphos' side.

"Not bad, Carrot-top." Sylphos says briefly. Flaere goes red like an embarrassingly naive schoolboy.

"You were _amazing_..." he gushes.

"Oh come on, you two are a _team_ now?" I complain aloud.

"Um, actually, we're a couple," Flaere says indignantly, placing a hand on the Marine's mocha shoulder. Talk about a power couple... But I see the way Sylphos grimaces at the contact; this is a sham.

"Yeah, and Damon's my uncle," I say sarcastically. "Flaere, he's just using you; you cannot be this stupid."

"Not true. I'm _madly_ in love with him," Sylphos says unconvincingly and he's not even trying, believe me.  

"You do realize only one of us can leave, right?" Damon pitches in too.

"So much for the wedding..." I mutter, "Hey, maybe you can do everyone a favor and just marry your hand instead."

He shoots me an annoyed look. "Shut it, nephew."

"W-Well, I..." Flaere falters; his hand slips off.

"Flaere, we're your friends!" Matteo pleads. I see the uncertainty on Flaere's face, and so does Sylphos. Something changes in his yellow eyes; he turns on a dime and lets an arrow fly. Flaere gasps, just barely ducking out of the way.

Matteo leaps to the defense of his friend, tackling the bigger man with a battle cry. He goes straight for Sylphos' only weakness: that gorgeous, endless cerulean hair, and grabs two fistfuls of braids, pulling mercilessly.

"You backstabbing hussy, how dare you play with his heart like that!" Matteo yells.

"Catfight!" Damon shouts between cupped hands. That reminds me: now's my chance! No one stops me this time when I jump Damon and wrap my hands around his throat.

So when a bewildered Snow finally catches up with us, stumbling between the trees, he finds me trying to wring the breath out of Damon and Matteo and Sylphos wrestling in a tangle of blue braids as Flaere crouches by a tree, sobbing broken-heartedly into his hands. Snow wisely decides not to comment, saying instead,

"H-Hey, what's that?" The activity pauses; we follow his pointing finger to something shiny lying in a clearing of trees. It flashes silver; my eyes widen. A _gun._

"It's a gun!" Someone - I don't even know who - shouts and then we're all pushing each other and sprinting towards it. This challenge is an arm's race, and a gun is the ultimate equalizer! I dive first, grabbing the handle and lighting up at the same time. At least until the ground gives way underneath me.

Twigs snapping and the rustle of leaves. Screaming. I land in something sticky. The others, who weren't far behind me, are in the same predicament, struggling in the brownish ooze. I lift my gaze to a circle cutout of sky. We fell in some kind of deep pit. Suddenly, a head pops into view at the rim. Jun, his straight purple hair dangling over the hole.

"Jun! Thank god you're here..."

"Well, well, well," He sounds very pleased with himself. "Looks like I caught myself a whole pack of rabid _dogs._ " Wait. It was a trap!

"Jun, what the hell?!" I tug against the sticky substance.

"Don't bother. That's boiled tree sap," he says. "I certainly didn't expect to catch you all at once, but I'm not complaining. I guess fools of a feather _stick_ together. Get it? Stick?" Jun smiles unpleasantly.

"I dunno, puns seem kind of beneath you..."

"Guess what else is beneath me," he quips. I notice he's leaning on a palm branch. Then he uses the thicker, scooped end to shovel dirt into the pit.

"Hey!" I shield my face with my hands. Jun sings as he fills in the pit scoop by scoop, enjoying this _way_ too much,

"I buried my former friends,

in a pit on a deserted island,

Drank pina coladas all weekend,

And also, Damon is dead. Hey!~"

"I have some notes," Damon says sarcastically.

"I don't want to be buried alive!" Flaere makes a heroic effort to free himself, actually managing to wrench his arms free. He windmills frantically a couple of times only to lose his balance and fall backward into the syrupy trap again.

"This is your fault!" Sylphos snaps, "If you had just listened to me-"

"You could have shot me in the head instead, you're right," he mumbles.

"It could be worse," Snow chirps unhelpfully. "We could be dying of yellow fever or a blue-ringed octopus bite or- oh who am I kidding?" With a sigh, he drags the curly wig off his head, revealing a short swoop of snow-white hair underneath. "If I'm going to die, I'm doing it like a man." He really means it too as he unclips his fake tits and tosses them in the sap where they jiggle obscenely like flesh-colored gelatin.

"Don't look so sad, guys," Jun says cheerfully, "When I get off this island, I'll tell everyone you only cried a little bit as you begged for your lives." While wearing my shirt and everything.

"You're a frigid bitch, you know that?" I say to him.

"The secret is to be born smarter than everyone around you."

If that's true, then why is he falling all of a sudden? I watch, stunned, as Jun lands in the syrup next to me.

"Wh-What?!" he wails in disbelief.

"Serves you right!" A voice floats into the pit. I look up at Finn standing where Jun once stood. That son of a gun, he pushed him!

"Alright!" I cheer him on.

"Don't 'alright' me, Rayce!" he scolds, "What is wrong with you people? Just look at yourselves, ready to fight and kill each other because some invisible being in the sky told you to!"

"But that's..." Damon's brow furrows. "But that's _religion._ "

"Ssssh!" I hiss at him under my breath, "Maybe don't antagonize the choir boy who can get us out of here!"

Finn goes bright red; his hand flies to touch his cross. "Religion is different!" He drags over a length of strong jungle vine. "Now I'm going to get you out of there, but only if you promise to act like good friends and neighbors from now on."

"We promise, we promise!" I say quickly, reaching up with both hands. The end of the vine lands in my grasp. Well, hallelujah!

 

###

 

"First thing's first," Damon comments as he looks up at the darkening sky. "We need to find food, water and shelter if we're going to survive this place." The rest of us are sitting around in the clearing, scraping off globs of tree sap with twigs and leaves.

"Who died and made you the leader?" I argue.

He folds his arms over his chest. "Okay, then what do you do think we should do?"

"I..." I falter. "Well obviously, we need to find _water_ , food and shelter..." He rolls his eyes.

"Let's split up, gather what we need and meet back here by nightfall. Matteo, you're with me." He thinks he can just order Matteo around wherever and whenever he wants...

"Hold still," Snow reminds me. He's taking a followup look at my injury. He said he had to clean it up as much as possible to keep it from developing an infection, but from the concerned look on his face, he may not be making much progress. The red one piece he wears withered against his chest, suddenly too loose for his flat frame, but those purple eyes are still girlish as they dart over my stitches. "This isn't working." That is exactly what you don't want to hear your doctor say during a checkup... I set my jaw against the pain as he peels off dirt and leaves. We hear an actual scream: Jun bemoaning the loss of his hair as Finn chops off the ends sticky with sap.

"It's just going to get worse if I don't cut it, you know that," Finn says softly.  

"Take it away, I don't want to look at it." Jun lays the back of his hand over his eyes.

"FOOLS!" Everyone is on edge again when Pele's booming voice fills the clearing. I was wondering when she'd make a reappearance. She isn't the only one when burning eyes dot the foliage. "YOU THINK YOU CAN DEFY ME AND GET AWAY WITH IT?" Glowing panthers emerge from the trees.

"Together!" I shout. We clump together in a ring, back to back with whatever weapons we've managed to collect, some of us using just our fists, which probably won't do much good against a pack of magical lava monsters...

"What are those things?" Sylphos wonders aloud.

"Trouble..."

"PERHAPS MY PETS SHALL TEAR YOU APART, AND THEN WE'LL SEE WHICH OF YOU IS LEFT STANDING!" Pele bellows. Lava spills between the big cats' jagged teeth, boxing us into a singed circle of earth quickly shrinking as the panthers close in. I hear the others panicking, yelling pointless instructions to each other. I lock eyes with the one directly in front of me. Its gleaming gaze burns a reminder in my brain of the one that I barely escaped from with my life. There's no water to save us this time. _This is it._

I spin around and grab Matteo by the shoulders.

"Rayce-?" He cuts himself off with a muffled noise as I press my lips against his. Matteo doesn't even try to resist me this time, throwing his arms around my neck as he sinks deeper in my embrace. He knows what this is: a goodbye kiss. For a moment, I'm not about to die. There's just me, him and our lips ebbing and flowing against each other. He draws his hands forward to cup my face as I slide my own down his sides. We part reluctantly, but it's worth it to stare into those blue eyes. And in this moment, hey, I had a decent existence. I could go now.

But we don't. I'm suddenly aware of the silence: no growling and no Pele barking at us either. Glancing around, I find the panthers have stopped in their tracks.

"WHAT... WHAT IS THAT, WHAT ARE YOU DOING, I DON'T-" Pele sounds flustered.

"...Kissing?" I say cautiously.

"YOU'RE BOTH MEN."

"And?"

Pele is conspicuously silent for a while.

"NEW RULES!" she booms suddenly, "MORE OF THAT. MUCH MORE OF THAT... AND IF YOU CAN PLEASE ME, WELL..." Hold on, say what now? I look up at the sky as if expecting her to follow up on that, but instead, the panthers turn tail and vanish back into the jungle.

The other guys are looking at Matteo and I holding each other. Matteo lets go immediately and I have to look for a new place to put my hands, folding them awkwardly.

"Sooo... About that water, food and shelter?" I change the subject.

"I'm going with Rayce!" Jun latches onto my arm suddenly.

 

"That's what happened last time," I sigh, looking up at the fat clusters of coconuts high out of reach. The monkeys are nowhere to be found this time, but that doesn't make the tree any shorter. Jun looks up, amused.

"Oh Rayce, it couldn't be simpler." He quickly gets to work fashioning the right tool for the job. Jun mounts a rock with a sharp edge on the end of a long stick and binds the two together with a length of jungle vine. When he's finished, he raises the pole cutter to the tree, sawing at the base of the cluster. It falls to the ground with a heavy thud, sending small insects and lizards scattering into the undergrowth,

"Jun, you did it!" I say excitedly. Wait, why is he looking at me like that? Jun wraps his willowy arm around my neck and kisses me. I blink rapidly, then get into it, letting my eyes drift shut as my hands find their way around his hips. Kissing Jun isn't like kissing Matteo. Less raw, less _passionate_... But he's sophisticated; goes down smooth like pricey liquor, and he's always so sure that I can't afford him. But now the tables have turned and he's the one who needs to trade love for a ticket off this island... Hey, I'm not complaining! He smiles against my lips when I grab his plush ass and squeeze.

"Want a taste?" he asks, planting a suckling kiss on my neck.

"Show me what you got." I grin.

Jun backs up, smiling coyly as he unbuttons my oversized shirt. He shrugs it from pointed shoulders, letting it fall without a sound. Drawing his fingers along a collarbone sharp enough to cut glass, he teases out the violet curtain of his hair in the same motion. I watch it cascade over his shoulder hypnotically. Jun knows he has me already and he hasn't given me a damn thing yet.

Giggling softly, Jun gets on all fours, presenting me with exactly what I want.

"Wh-What are you doing?" he asks when I tie his wrists together behind his back with a leftover length of vine.

"Putting a little... _Kink_ in your plan." I wink at him before trussing his ankles together too.

"You were right, puns are the worst..."

Jun isn't the only one who can MacGyver a tool in the wild. Stripping the green part away from a palm leaf, I'm left with the thin, woody, but flexible stem. I test it out on Jun. He lets out a yelp of pain as the palm switch leaves a red mark on creamy skin. _Perfect._

"MORE." He looks around, worried, as Pele interrupts.

"Yes, ma'am." I grin, slapping the whip eagerly against my palm.

Jun's cries of pain turn into moaning as he gets more into it. He bites his lip, panting softly, then gasps out when I lay a particularly stinging lash across his ass.

"Serves you right for trying to bury your master alive." I growl.

"Forgive me, Master," he moans.

"You deserve to be punished..." The switch sings through the air, landing sharply across the soles of his feet this time.

"A-Ah!" he yells out; squirming. Then he lifts his ass like an obedient slut. "Harder," he begs.

Jun makes the most delicious noises as I scratch him up with the switch. A vicious one tears skin. Flecks of blood. He falls forward, touching his forehead to the dirt as his hair blankets the ground. That leaves a puffy ass turned up toward me, begging for more abuse. Layered with ripe red stripes, it trembles temptingly. He looks good enough to eat. I just grab him, sinking my fingers into tender flesh. Letting out a sound halfway between pleasure and pain, Jun flashes me a hot look over his shoulder.

"Oh, Rayce..."

Spreading his inflamed cheeks apart, I saw at the place between, my cock slick with precum. Jun rolls his head to a side so he can look at me, breathing hard. His heavy eyes say: _do it._ Who am I to tell him no?

I enter his tight ass slowly, taking my time with him. He moans, then grits his teeth as I reach around to grip his rock hard cock.

"Slut. This is supposed to be a punishment, and you're enjoying this," I tease him.

"Master, you're just so good," he gasps out. I thrust slowly but firmly, jerking him off at the same pace.

"Fuck me," he whimpers. I draw a hand through his silky hair.

"Only because you're pretty enough to be such a bitch," I whisper low. Grabbing his ample hips, I square my own and deliver like a fucking stud. Slapping against him makes all the stinging red marks on his ass go off painfully; he screams like a slut. I give it to him until the pain peaks and then dulls into a throbbing ache if his exhausted breathing is anything to go on. Spoiled by his plump cushion, I climax inside, pulling him sharply on me for the finale. I collapse on top of Jun, catching my breath as I toy with his hair.

"Think that was enough to get us off the island?" I muse. But he locks me out, going stiff.

"It better be..." he mutters.

When we return to the campsite, Jun limps over to a rock to sit down, wincing as his sensitive ass touches the cool surface. I grin at his expression. Damon, lugging an armful of firewood looks between us, annoyed. Oh what's that? _Jealousy?_ It just kills him inside that he isn't the alpha male anymore, and I'm _living for it._

"Did you actually get anything done, or..."

"Yeah, yeah, we got the food." I let the coconuts fall in a heap by the fire. My attention travels to the shelter slowly coming together in the middle of the campsite. Matteo and Flaere are hard at work building up their lopsided masterpiece of leaves and branches.

"Not bad," I comment, walking over. My gaze rests on Matteo's ass while he's bent over pounding a stake into the ground. "Not bad at all..."

"Th-Thanks." He blushes, sitting back on his heels when he realizes. Flaere's hands wrap around my wrist.

"It's even better on the inside. Come see!" He leads me into the tent eagerly. The tightly interwoven branches keep out the cold and bundles of flat leaves and grass serve as bedding. A rock face serves as one of the walls, presumably so they wouldn't have to painstakingly construct another one before sundown. Planting my hands on my hips, I look around.

"This'll work - woah!" Flaere is already taking off his shirt. He pauses, half-in and half-out. "What are you doing?" I ask.

"I thought we were having sex!" Flaere tosses his shirt in the air playfully. It floats to the ground somewhere behind him.

"You too?" I size him up, amused. Flaere's body is much tougher than Jun's; he's shredded from his tight abs to his strong arms. So it's not a walk in the park to carry him when he leaps onto me, wrapping his legs around my hips. I stumble, resting my back against the rock wall for support as I look up into bright grey eyes.

"I thought you were heartbroken." I simper at him.

"I was..." He caresses the side of my face then runs ticklish fingers over my shoulder. "Then I remembered I still have you."

"You _always_ have me, Flaere." I bite his lower lip and reel him in. At the same time, I lower him on my cock, sheathing myself in his warm depths. He pants, bobbing in time with me as I lever him up and down. I pick up the pace just to make his perky ponytail bounce like a slutty cheerleader riding massive quarterback cock. And trust me, my size doesn't disappoint...

"I'm close, I'm close!" he gasps with his eyes squeezed shut, face flushed. His nails dig into my back. _Me too._ I strain to prolong myself. But before either of us can blow-

"I thought I'd find you two here..." My eyes flutter open again; Sylphos is brushing a leaf aside to enter the hut.

"You." Flaere immediately shuts off. He wraps himself tight around me, burying his face in my neck.

"I did what I had to do, Flaere," Sylphos says unapologetically. Flaere still doesn't look convinced.

"You were mean." He sounds like a child.

"Tell you what, I'll make it up to you." The Marine steps out of his pants and _now_ Flaere is interested, peeking from the crook of my neck as Sylphos casually strokes his cock to erection.

That treat is too tempting to pass up. Peeling off my chest, Flaere bends his incredibly elastic body backward, capturing the second cock in his mouth upside down while I'm still buried deep in his ass. _God_ that's hot... Sylphos and I thrust together, drawing slutty noises out of Flaere hanging between us. His ponytail bobs jauntily.

"So _this_ is your plan?" Sylphos looks at me.

"Hey, you heard Pele. Besides, I like this option much better than the other one..."

He flashes me a toothy grin. "That's because this is the only way you could win." I turn my nose up at him.

"I could be offended by that, but I choose to take it as a compliment instead."

"O-Oh-" Sylphos responds with a moan because Flaere just found his way into the herm's pussy, stroking the slit beneath his cock gently until it lubricates. Flaere's muscular body tenses in a climax, milking me for cum as he swallows and pulls smoothly off Sylphos, but now the Marine is sorely stimulated in a different way and it won't stop until he's satisfied...

"Move... Fucking cocktease..." he growls. Flaere hops off with a naughty smile, moving out of the way for Sylphos to take his place.

"Hello, hello," I greet the Marine warmly as he spins around, offering me his wrists to hold while he lowers his wet muff on my straining cock. I close my eyes, enveloped in velvet folds. A moan forms in my throat. Sylphos bounces at a steady clip, panting hotly. Yanking back on his wrists, I burrow into cerulean braids and plant a kiss between his strong shoulder blades. I rest my chin on his shoulder; he slips me a begrudging glance out of the corner of his eyes.

"I ever tell you how gorgeous you are?"

"Only when you're trying to get into my pants." He arches an eyebrow. But he changes gear, leaning back against me until he's sliding more up and down instead of back and forth, sandwiching me between his back and the wall. From here, the taller sub can rest his chin on top of my head, nestled in my red hair. I slip my fingers over the backs of his hands and slide them between his. He latches down possessively

Sylphos whispers suddenly, "We can't trust her, Rayce." A split second before I cream his spasming pussy.

This time, the comedown is much quicker. I suddenly feel hot and cold all at once and painfully overstimulated. Without saying much to either of my partners, I quickly get dressed again. He's right... We're still stuck on this island with a crazy goddess calling the shots and hey, I might be really, _really_ good at sex but even that can't keep her occupied forever.

I bump into Snow standing right at the entrance to the hut.

"Rayce, I found the solution to our problem!"

"Problem?" I don't know what he's talking about at first. In response, he holds up - oh _god_ \- an obese white grub like an overstuffed sausage. It's the size of his entire palm, writhing blindly in his grip. Scraggly black legs that can't possibly be big enough to hold it up flail at the air. And I _still_ don't know what he's talking about, but this solves exactly nothing! "What the fuck is that?!" I back up as much as I can without falling back into the hut. Snow just looks excited.

"I found it in the forest! It can clean the infection from your injury."

"Excuse me?"

"Haven't you ever heard of maggot therapy?" His horrible intentions dawn on me; I home in on the grub's razor-sharp jaws gnashing together. And he wants to put that - Okay, no amount of masturbating and topless nurses is going to convince me this time!

"Get that thing away from me!" I push him aside, just _running_ , I don't even know where! A bright red shape stands out from the jungle background. I can't believe what I see: the crab from the beach. It scuttles into the forest. I follow it unthinkingly; any excuse to get away from Snow and his worm.

It seems to get darker, like someone hit the dimmer switch as I follow the crab deep into the forest. I have to sidestep between trees and hop rocks just to keep up. But just when it gets really dark, I hear rushing water.

"Oh, no way..." I murmur, stepping up to the secluded grotto. I didn't expect this to actually go anywhere... Pristine water spills from above in a small waterfall, gently disturbing lily pads in the pool below before continuing its path in a thin stream through the jungle. The crab is perched on a rock at the rim. It's almost like it's watching me.

But that's ridiculous... Obviously. Kneeling to the pool, I cup water in my hands and drink. I feel it go down, spreading a chill through my entire body, like it's cleaning my insides of this stressful, awful day. That just reminds me how gross and sweaty I am on the _outside_ , reeking of sticky, humid sex. I slip out of my clothes and take a running leap, cannonballing straight in. Cool water envelops me from head to toe; I haven't felt this good in _ages,_ just suspended serenely in cool blue.

I don't ever want to come up but my lungs disagree. My head breaks the surface as I push wet hair out of my face. After a quick rinse under the waterfall, I climb out of the pool reluctantly. That's when I notice it, obvious in the darkness: the _glowing_. My wound glows with an almost radioactive blue luminosity. My eyes widen. That can't be normal.

"Help! _Help!_ " I yell desperately to no one. Right before my eyes, the glowing sliver of blue grows thinner and thinner until it disappears altogether, as if it was knitted closed. The palm stitches fall away and then I fall silent. I... I'm _healed._ I run a hand over my leg where the injury used to be. But something isn't quite right... The new skin that stretched over it is a light, silvery grey color, odd against my naturally beige skin. It's surprisingly rough if I rub it against the grain. _Freaky_.

"What did you do to me?!" I yell at the crab accusingly. But it's a fucking crab; it doesn't answer, waving its eye stalks noncommittally. I don't have time to worry about my freakish new skin condition when I hear noises upstream. Muffled screaming. What _now?_

When I find the source, I stop dead in my tracks. Damon, bent over the struggling form of Finn pinned to a rock. When Damon notices me, he grins wide. And sure, he's always hounding cute subs like a horndog, but he doesn't really want Finn, not _really_. Not because he's sweet, adorable Finn with the soft green eyes and cute blonde hair, but because he's Finn: _Rayce's_ _boyfriend._ Why else would he leave the most obvious bruises all over Finn's pale skin, unless he wanted to be sure that I would see them, just like he had to watch his fiance kissing me in his final moments instead of him...  

"Get _off_ of him!" I tear him off Finn anyway.

Damon stumbles backward, straightening his clothes and panting softly. "So you finally showed up to save your precious boyfriend..." Finn wriggles away through the grass.

"You're pathetic," I spit.

"No, _you_." He fires back.

I narrow my eyes. "Mature. Whatever you're trying to prove right now; we have bigger problems."

"Sure Gunner! If that's what you need to tell yourself and your micropenis." He lets out a sharp laugh. The less composed Damon gets, the more childish his insults become. "What was it you said? 'Who died and made you the leader?'"

"Why does it even matter?" My tone softens, tired. "This isn't Halo Halo Island. Hell, this isn't even Fade HQ, you don't have to compete with me." He goes kind of quiet at that, but still looks distrustful. I shrug. "If you think about it... We don't have to be anything anymore. We don't have to be _anyone_ "

"Oh shut up, would you?" But I see the uncertainty on his face when all those things he cares about, all that wasted time and effort suddenly seems pointless on Ele Ele. He grits his teeth. "Just _shut up!_ " He snaps and takes it out on me, raising his fist. I brace myself.

Just before we can lay hands on each other, a blinding spotlight illuminates the river bank, overexposing us both. Blinking in the sudden light, I look up, but can't find the source. I do hear Pele's voice.

"DANCE FOR ME."

"You have got to be kidding me..." I groan inwardly. Fury burns in Damon's dark eyes but he holds a hand out to me surprisingly quick. He cracks a tiny smile.

"I'll lead. You know, because of your leg and all." Oh, because he thinks this is just one more way he can humiliate me. Instead of taking his hand, I shoot him a nasty look and drop into a squat, alternating squat kicks one leg at a time with my arms crossed, you know, that russian dance or whatever that you need major trunks to pull off. It works at impressing Damon anyway, making his eyes widen slightly.

"Hey!" I shout out, springing up on my feet again and grabbing his lax hand out of the air. "Surprise, bitch." I grin.

"Ah!" Damon protests as I spin him into my grip, then dip him theatrically. Hey, he almost looks like not the worst person on the fucking planet from this angle. Almost. Damon recovers himself, seizing my hand so hard on the uptake that it actually hurts. I won't be moving that without his permission anymore... For a few tense moments, we're trapped in a rigid box step, pacing swiftly back and forth, back and forth, sizing each other up. His face breaks out in a smile and he lets go of my hands as he loosens up at the hips.

"Just try and keep up, Gunner." _Another_ one of his challenges? But I recognize his movements.

"You salsa?"

" _You_ salsa?" I'm just shocked we have something in common. Damon doesn't even mind letting me lead - that just means he gets all the dramatic moves and I'm struggling to keep up, watching his chiselled figure twist and spin between my guiding hands. How are we supposed to dance without music? The complaint fades when I realize that we already have a rhythm: I can see it in the way he moves. I can _feel_ it when we touch. I'm strength and he's confidence, cocking a leg provocatively up on my shoulder while I steady his hips. I let a hand wander up the underside of his thigh with a growl.

"You peacock like a bottom bitch. It's almost like you want it..."

"Is that what you think?" he says under his breath. Spinning around, he presses his back to my chest, sliding down slowly. "You think you know what I want?" Well, if it's the same thing _I_ want... Grabbing his hand, I show him _dominance_ . I pull him up as I manipulate his angular body into another spin, snap him out into an open hold and then cross his arms behind his back before yanking him right back into my arms. Damon whips around to face me; there's something in his eyes - I think he _enjoyed_ that. I grab his hip immediately and use my other hand to grasp his tightly. Weaving back and forth, our eyes are locked intensely.

"Careful, Gunner." He's wearing that stupid, cocky grin again... "Or you might fall in love with me."

"Ew, gross." But I'm staring at his lips and that's problematic, so I spin him again instead - once, twice, three times, _four -_ getting faster and faster each time! My other hand hovers, shaping him like a potter creating seductive curves with clay. But I'm so focused on his body that I forget my own. My leading hand slips. Damon spins out as we uncouple like a pair of slipped gears. He falls back on his ass. I freeze in position, just horrified while he blinks, stunned. _Laughter_. Soft at first, making his shoulders bob, then he throws his head back and lets it spill out. I can't help but join in. I liked that. I really liked that.

"Me too," he says. I blush when I realize I actually said it out loud. There's a flush on his cheeks too: is that because of the exertion or something else...

"KISS ALREADY." Pele eggs us on. Why does that suddenly sound like such a good idea? I grin down at Damon while he flashes me a heavy-lidded look.

"You heard her," he says nonchalantly. That's all the invitation I needed.

I pounce, pinning Damon underneath me on the grass. He has nowhere to go, trapped like prey as I devour his lips - or maybe he's devouring mine? We tussle for control, hands entangled with hair, tongue-wrestling - _teeth._ He bites my lip, making me gasp aloud, and then he goes for the throat. He latches on like a vamp, giving me a painful, desirous hickey. Moaning, I drag a hand through his hair, ruining it because it's about damn time someone did!

When Damon feels me pulling down his compression shorts, he shoots me a glare. But instead of penetrating him, I rub my cock against his: it's a compromise. His brow relaxes; he lays back again with his arms behind his head and smirks at me.

"Harder, Gunner. Faster! Come on, I thought you could do better than that!" he taunts.

"Dead fish," I accuse, but my eyes are all over him, his toned muscles, broad chest, yeah, even that stupidly handsome grin.

Damon flexes, teasing, "Ha! Made you blush." There's heat on my face as we rocket toward a climax.

"Fuck... _Fuck!_ " I curse because of what's going on, but mostly because of how _good_ it feels. I grab his firm ass for better leverage as he hoists his legs up on my shoulders, breathing hard. We go off almost at the same time, striping Damon's chest white. He arches underneath me. I don't move an inch while we're both coming down, afraid of what might happen as soon as we're out of this weird, alternate universe wormhole and back in the real world where we hate each other's guts.

We get dragged back there faster than I expected when I hear someone clear their throat behind me. Every hair on the back of my neck stands on end as I turn around slowly. Finn stands there, holding the red crab in his hands. I feel the weight of his judgement, the universe's judgement - maybe even _god's_ judgement - come down on me all at once.

"Fiiiiinn..." My voice is so high-pitched I wonder if humans can even still hear it. Damon lies flat on the ground, staring bug-eyed at the sky.

"Kill me," he moans, "Make it look like an accident. No one will know."

"Finn would know..."

"He's seen too much," Damon hisses.  
I try to help Damon to his feet but he ignores my extended hand and gets up on his own, pulling his pants up in the same movement.

"That's it," he's cursing under his breath. "I've had it with this place; nothing here makes any sense! I'm done playing by her rules."

"Agreed."

"Pele must _die._ "

 

By the time we return to camp, it's pitch dark. The others clearly got way more done than we did: the shelter looks done and a stew of some sort boils in a makeshift pot over the fire.

"You're back!" Matteo looks up as he stirs it with a stick. "You guys look..." He looks from Damon and his mussed-up hair to my neck covered in dark purple hickeys and settles on both of our gaunt, mortified faces. "Wait, what is this exactly?" His mouth tilts. I don't reply, sitting in an empty spot by the fire. Finn folds his legs next to me. Damon makes sure to take a seat aaaaaall the way on the other side next to his fiance. Matteo lays the stirring stick in his lap, staring blankly at the pot as he quietly processes this disturbing new information.

Jun doesn't grasp the gravity around the campfire - or just doesn't care - as he complains to the sky.

"I'm starving... Wish we had some protein."

"I've got protein," Snow chirps.

"Put your disgusting grub away, Coolidge, nobody wants to see that..." Jun grumbles. And that isn't a euphemism for once.

Desperate to avert as much attention as possible, "Well, that's your cue, Mr. Krabs." I scoop the little red crab out of Finn's lap and toss it into the pot while he shrieks at the top of his lungs.

Suddenly, the pot leaps and stew spews from it like a geyser while we all scramble away screaming, just in time as the entire thing tips over. The spilled stew put out the fire. Steam and smoke billow from the damp spot, and as the clouds clear, a silhouette takes shape. A sculpted man with tan skin is dragging himself out of the pot, panting.

"What the hell did you guys put in the soup?!" I demand. Matteo just shakes his head, horrified. As the man slips out, I see that he has the body of a grey shark from the waist down. I jump a little when he turns furious dark eyes on me.

"You tried to eat me?!" The man sounds indignant. "I thought we were friends!"

"I thought you were a _crab!_ "

"Who are you?" Matteo demands. The shark-man looks at him like he's stupid.

"Kamohoali'i. Patron deity of sharks? You've heard of me." Matteo's eyes get very wide at that. He clutches his shark tooth necklace and gasps,

"My guardian deity!"

"Sure bro, whatever."

"Why were you following me?" I ask, still adjusting to the fact that a crab just turned into a man who is actually a man-shark, who is really a shark deity _right in front of me._ This vacation is more stressful than the war.

"Because!" Kamohoali'i drags his hands through his silver-grey hair. "I need help. I need _someone's_ help. I'm Pele's little brother and this is her island."

"Hate to break it to you, but we're not exactly huge fans." Jun crosses his arms over his chest haughtily.

"Good," the shark god says grimly. He points up at the dark silhouette of the volcano. "Because that is _not_ my sister."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> S/O to that time you discovered yaoi and it changed EVERYTHING.


	3. Aloha 'Oe

All weapons are out in an instant; the shark-man hold his hands up defensively.

"Woah, woah!" he cries.  

"Start explaining, fish boy," Sylphos growls. Matteo isn't on the same page when he steps straight into the incredibly deadly space between Sylphos' arrow and its target. He holds his arms out to shield Komohoali'i who, by the way, is off to a _great_ start at the whole guardian deity thing...

"What do you think you're doing? This is the _shark god!_ " says Matteo, indignant.

"Komo," Komohoali'i pipes up, nervous, "You can call me Komo; we're all friends here, right?"

Jun deadpans a signature: "No."

"And how do you know that?" Matteo challenges, "You've already made up your minds, but he might be the only one here who can actually help us!"

"The only difference between him and Pele as far as I'm concerned is that he isn't a disembodied voice." Sylphos narrows his eyes dangerously. "And that means he probably bleeds."

"You got me there..." Komo lets out a nervous cough of non-laughter. "But I already told you: that isn't Pele."

"And we're just supposed to believe that."

"Well maybe we'd know what to believe if we actually listened to people for two minutes without shooting them first!" Matteo argues.

"Newsflash, that's all the military _does_ ," snarks Jun, "Don't they hand out a pamphlet about this or something?"

"Look, I can explain everything." Komo insists. His eyes sharpen suddenly and he says low, "But first, how good are you with that bow?" Sylphos just smirks and rolls his yellow eyes without dignifying that with an answer. "We have an eavesdropper." Komo points to a tree at the perimeter of the campsite. I follow it there, but... What is he talking about? I can't see a thing in the dark foliage, and yet, Sylphos' arrow is already soaring towards it. A furry, red body drops out of the tree like a stone, eerily still. The arrow fletching blows in the wind.

"And you couldn't have done that maybe ten seconds before we tried to make shark god soup?" Jun raises an eyebrow at him.

"I wouldn't eat that if I were you," warns Komo, "It's one of their beasts, and also how they've been watching you all this time. The monkeys are their eyes and ears and the panthers are their agents."

"They?" Finn repeats fearfully. "There's more than one?"

Komo nods, grim. "It all started maybe a few months ago... The day Kahuna Koanui's first son was born-"

"Who, _Makaneo?_ " I interrupt, "That was two and a half _decades_ ago."   

Komo's eyes widen, horrified "What? But I could've sworn..."

"Have you even seen him lately?" I flash him a sleazy grin. "That baby grew into a total babe." Aaand I'm already off daydreaming about his naked ass again. Jun snaps his fingers in my face, demanding my attention.

"We're getting off track. Komo, go on." He cues him.

Komo looks crestfallen as he continues, "Well... It was two and a half decades ago, then."

 

###

 

The day began so perfectly. So blue and beautiful. But now, I found myself skimming the familiar surf off Halo Halo Island, full of rage, as waves churned under a stormy sky. The water reflected its grey. Rain drummed down like the spray of an island waterfall. Even the intense brine of the sea was diluted by the sheer volume of the downpour. Suddenly the choppy canvas of the ocean was disturbed by a fleeting glimpse of red before it slipped beneath the surface. _There she is._ I dove in hot pursuit. In the endless expanse, she couldn't hide from me: I found her shimmering scarlet twisting in the deep. Her fins looked like the ruffled skirts of a dress tossing in some passionate dance. They were split into a pair of fish-like tails, unlike the single tail of her distant cousins, the merfolk. But _she_ was a siren.  

"Marisol! I already told you to go back to Cortez, where you came from. You'll find the seas around here have more _teeth_ than you're used to." I pointed my long, mahogany club edged with shark teeth at her. They didn't seem to intimidate her; she wore the same, mischievous smile and defiant glint in her reptilian eyes. Endless waves of dark hair billowed around her beautiful countenance as she remarked,

"Well, if it isn't the guardian of Halo Halo himself: _Dientes._ " Teeth: her disrespectful nickname, and a hypocritical one. "I think _you'll_ find that I have teeth of my own." She revealed an alligator grin. Marisol and I circled each other restlessly. I was done warning her.

"I'm not in the mood for your games... You've been abducting and eating the islanders. I won't let it go on!" I growled.  

She jutted out a plush lip. "Sirens have to eat too. If a human goes missing every now and then, who are you to complain? It's only ever the ones who listen to their penises instead of their brains anyway. You could choose to think of us as agents of natural selection."

"I 'choose to think of you' as bloodthirsty sea marauders picking off my people one by one." I swiped my club decisively through the water. "This ends now!" Then, with a powerful thrust of my shark tail, I aimed for her.

As Marisol rushed through the water to meet me, she drew her steel cutlass. I readied my club to engage, but at the last moment, she shouted- "Perla!" Sirens never hunt alone. Blinding silver-white flashed through the water, followed by sharp pain. I touched my cheek incredulously as a red bloom filled my vision. The second siren distracted me long enough for Marisol to cut in with her blade.

"Ah!" Flailing like a wounded fish, I wavered through the water, hemorrhaging into blue.

"So much for the famed _shark god_ of Halo-Halo..." Marisol tutted. I clasped a hand to my injuries as I watched the sirens circle me. A third siren had joined the other two, green tails undulating behind her, holding a gleaming axe in her strong grip. Marisol's reptilian pupils narrowed to slits as she caught a hit of the blood in the water. "Let's finish this, sisters."

The sirens ripped through the water blindingly fast, taking turns at me like a pod of dolphins harassing a lone shark. I couldn't escape. I blocked one attack, only to feel a second blade slip between my ribs from behind. I was blindsided by a heavy tail slap that sent me spinning, disoriented. Blood and bubbles filled the water; my scream dissolved away. Then suddenly, sharp teeth sank into my shoulder.

"No!" I shouted desperately, shoving Marisol with the last of my strength before she could tear out a chunk.

"Eh Papi, does it hurt?"  Marisol taunted. Her voice was dangerously close. "They say shark is a true delicacy..." Cruel, feminine laughter echoed all around me. I swam in a blind attempt to get away, rowing my tail weakly, but I knew I wasn't getting anywhere. _What's the point?_ The fight was abandoning me.   

"There's something different about you today, Dientes," said Marisol, "Your fire is gone. Did a pretty island girl break your heart?" My blood flashed hot through my veins.

" _Silence!_ " I threw my arms out, sending them flying backward in a powerful pulse of water. I homed in on Marisol tumbling through the waves and sped after her.

She recovered herself just enough to raise her blade, but this time, I easily overpowered her. I was no longer in the mood for mercy, leaving a jagged gash along her forearms. Desperate, Marisol entangled her twin tails with mine in an attempt to limit my mobility, but she scraped herself on the rough skin. Blood in the water; my senses sharpened. I saw the fear in Marisol's eyes. I could've ended it, but instead, I gripped her face in my hand gloatingly, squeezing her cheeks into a pucker as she hung on my wrists.

"Is this different enough for you?" I challenged, shaking her. "I gave you so many chances to go in peace," I bared serrated fangs; vicious intentions were already running through my head. "Maybe I should send you off in _pieces_ instead!"

This time her tails slipped around my human waist. I blinked in surprise at the surprising softness of her fins on my skin.

"I-I had no idea you were such a voracious fighter, Dient- _Komohoali'i_..." I noticed her spread her tails almost imperceptibly. Seduction: the last defense of a siren - sometimes the first - always a favorite. I allowed my gaze to drop briefly to the slit in the place between.

"Now you want to change the game," I mused.

"I just thought, since you're so passionate with that weapon..." Her coils tightened, drawing me in closer. The scales flashed reddish-orange as if they were on fire underwater, bright against my waist. I traced upward over her bare, tapered waist and sandy brown skin which blended in with the seafloor. Marisol's ample breasts were cradled in a harness of ruffled red seaweed.

 

###

 

"This is excruciating," Jun complains, "We're going to die of old age on this island before we get to the point."

"I agree" I prop my chin on my palm, completely focused. "Keep going."

Komo flashes his jagged teeth in a grin. "Someone has an appetite."

 

###

 

I was hungry, but it wasn't the kind of hunger that could be satiated by food: only by the hunt and the kill that comes before it. My anger had stemmed from it, but broke down now to rebuild itself as _lust._ I seized Marisol around the hips, crushing her against my erections.

"You have... Two." Marisol sounded surprised as she glanced down at my twin peckers, pale white against the grey of my shark half.

"A fortunate quirk of shark anatomy..." I grinned at her, rubbing the swollen lengths against her labia. Speaking of anatomy, she seemed woefully disproportionate. "Scared?"

"Intrigued," she responded. Marisol's scales were smooth under my exploring fingers; she linked her arms around my neck, carefully biting her lip as I pushed in. Her slit didn't resist: in fact, it welcomed me eagerly, undulating like a living thing. Her folds were pliant enough to swallow both of my impressive girths, but tightened on me like a sleeve once it had them in its grip.

"Oh..." I moaned, closing my eyes. Marisol was slippery and warm on the inside in spite of the coldness of the sea. I buried my face in her neck, shielded in her hair. I didn't want her; I just wanted the feeling to last as I thrusted, using my tail for leverage. And yet she had to remind me of her presence as she gasped and moaned in my arms. Digging a hand up and under her seaweed bra, I squeezed her soft breast.

"Komo..." She drew her fingers gently through my silver hair. Then I felt fingers on my back too, but they didn't belong to my partner. My eyes shot open again: her sisters- how could I have been so careless?

But instead of the pain I anticipated, I felt only the lulling sensation of elfin hands traveling around my torso. I glanced warily at Perla: the sister with the fine white hair and then at the brunette, Isabelle.

"You know how it is having sisters." Marisol simpers. "They're always getting jealous of you."

"Well, there's no need to be jealous..." A grin slowly found its way onto my face. I wrapped a hand around each generous hip. "When there's plenty to go around." Cupping Perla against my waist, I slipped a hand between her tails to finger her tighter, smaller slit. I had my other hand on Isabelle's back, netting her in for a kiss. Marisol wrapped herself more tightly around me as she bounced.

Staring at the sky, hours later, I listened to my own gasping for breath. The storm had almost completely cleared up, leaving behind only a memory in grey scraps of clouds. Gentle waves lapped at my body floating on the surface. I was vaguely aware of the sirens floating nearby, exhausted from our exertions. I felt a twinge of pride and grinned to myself. Of course they were. Marisol rolled over and swam toward me, her golden-green eyes bright over the surface. I lowered my gaze to watch a delicate hand dart over my chest.

Lifting her chin on my hand, I reveled in the attractive siren's attention. _Ha! I didn't... I didn't even need him._

"Ask for a blessing, whatever you want. I can make it happen." I said to her. Her pretty eyes twinkled.

"A fortunate quirk of laying with a god?" Then they darted away. She said almost irrelevantly, "The islands in these waters are so beautiful..."

"Want one named after you?"

"My favorite already has a name: Ele Ele Island." I faltered at that, swimming upright.

"Oh... Ele Ele belongs to my sister, Pele."  

"Say that ten times fast..." She jutted her lip out at me. "So we can't go?"

Not to be outdone - not when I had just started feeling like my old self again, I protested, "I never said that!"

I led the sirens to the black silhouette of Ele Ele afloat in a desolate section of ocean. Pele often came here to be alone, but she wasn't home that day. The currents seemed naturally warmer: a reminder that the volcano was dormant, but far from dead.

"How striking," Marisol marveled.

"Then you're going to love the inside." I flashed her a toothy grin before diving beneath the waves towards a blue hole. The mouth of an underwater tunnel.

 

###

 

"Once they were inside, they had no further use for me. They seized control of the entire island, including my sister's pets," Komo says regretfully. "If I don't get them out of here before Pele returns, she's going to kill me!"

"Really?" Matteo's eyes widen. Komo tosses his squared shoulders.

"Well no, not _really_ , she's my sister, but still..."

"Why am I not surprised?" Jun lets out an exasperated sigh. "All our problems start like this: wannabe alpha male gets himself into penis problems and everyone else has to clean up after him."

"Well hold on," Snow points out. "Let's not completely write off wannabe alpha males with penis problems. The only reason we're still alive is because of Rayce."

I fold my arms, muttering, " _You're_ the one with penis problems..."

"It doesn't matter. The second we stop playing by their rules, that volcano is going to blow. Game over." Jun reminds us.

"I might have a solution," says Komo.

As the shark god raises a hand, clouds gather in the sky, curdling into dark grey soup. When the rain begins to fall, it's _freezing_ , and you might think I'm being melodramatic, but this is the coldest rain I've ever felt in my life. I put an arm around poor, skinny Finn who must be feeling it the most as he shivers.

"S-So when you said 'solution'..." Finn begins.

"As long as the rain falls, the volcano can't erupt," Komo explains.

Snow mumbles, "That doesn't sound very scientific..." But the shark god's dark eyes twinkle.

"Who said it was _science?_ But the magic of Ele Ele Island is stronger than mine. Our window of opportunity is small."

"Ugh, so much for our vacation." I groan, getting to my feet anyway as I stretch my arms over my head. "Huddle up, boys!" I call. We lock arms and lean in. As I look around the ring, I realize there's no one else I'd rather be stranded on a magical, volcanic island with. Damon was right: we have the best crew on the seven seas. "We have to rush the volcano before the rain stops."

Damon takes a breath - here we go again - "Who died and made you-"

"Leader?" I complete his sentence, shooting him a dry smile. "Same guy who made you leader, I guess. We're splitting up. I'll take a team straight through and you circle around from the other side. If we're lucky, we'll split Pele's monsters too." I turn to Jun, "Think you can rig us up some gear for the climb?"

"I'm on it," says the engineer.  

"Teams?"

"I call shark boy," Damon says right away, "What? He's supposed to be a god or something, right?"

"I'm going with my _guardian deity_ , obviously." Matteo gushes.

"Wow, you're still on about that, huh?" quips Komo. I'll try to remind myself that technically, he picked _Komo_ , not Damon...

"Fine, but I get Sylphos, then..." When we've finished picking teams like a high school dodgeball game, I end up with Sylphos, Flaere, Finn and Snow. Together, we turn our attention to the daunting silhouette of the volcano.

"Hey, Damon," I say to him standing next to me, calming my nerves over the mammoth task with small talk. "Wanna make a bet?"

"I do love games."

"First one to stake a siren gets to have vacation sex with Matteo." His eyes widen because I'm usually not that forward about preying on his fiance. What can I say? I'm feeling lucky.

"That is completely inappropriate." Then I see his dark eyes twinkle as he half-turns to look at me. " _Deal._ "

"You scumbag!" I snicker, even though I'm the one who asked.

"Ready to go?" Matteo clips a length of vine rope to his belt as he approaches, completely oblivious that his ass was just brokered on another stupid game. He glances between us with an eyebrow raised. "Or do you two lovebirds need a minute?"

"Oh come on babe, you know I'd last longer than that." Damon plants a quick kiss on Matteo's cheek, then knocks fists with me before we part ways. My smile fades as I watch Matteo go. His wavy black hair bounces along behind him. _You'd better watch his back._ I subliminally message Damon.

Water filters through the canopy from leaf to leaf on its way to the ground. We move quickly through the forest. It's quiet: maybe Pele's beasts are sulking about the weather for now, but I don't expect our luck to last.

"SUPPRESSING RAIN, AGAIN? I SEE DIENTES HASN'T LEARNED ANY NEW TRICKS." Speak of the she-devil...

"It's over, Pele!" I call out, "Or should I say, Marisol?"

"Perla," Flaere mentions.

"And Isabelle!" Snow chirps from the back.

"HE TOLD YOU A FEW THINGS ABOUT ME, BUT WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT HIM _?_ PERHAPS WE SHOULD RETURN THE FAVOR."

"Can it. We don't negotiate with man-eaters."

"IT SEEMED LIKE A WASTE _NOT_ TO EAT THEM WHEN THEY WERE BEING HAND-DELIVERED TO US ON A SILVER PLATTER..."

That throws me off.  Maybe we can negotiate just a little bit... "Wait, what are you talking about?" I demand.  

"They're just trying to distract you, Gunner," says Sylphos.

"IF WE WANTED TO DISTRACT YOU, WE WOULD JUST DO THIS." Oh, hey, there's a familiar sound... Growling. I take one look at the gleaming eyes between the leaves, grab Finn's small hand and start sprinting.

" _Run!_ " Twigs and branches rake at my face and exposed arms. At one point, I just scoop Finn up and toss him over my shoulder, because his running leaves a _lot_ to be desired. But compared to Pele's beasts, so does mine. Out of the corner of my eyes, I see glowing bodies keeping up easily between the trees.

Finn bounces on my shoulder, both fists bunched around handfuls of my shirt. I hear him gasp aloud, "Rayce, behind you!" I duck just in time as a panther leaps through the air over my head. I feel _heat_. It bounds back at me with a vicious roar. _Brace-!_ But Flaere knocks the big cat off course, wrestling it to the forest floor. Why he thought it was a good idea to mud wrestle a panther made of _living coal_ , I'll never understand. Flaere realizes his mistake pretty quickly as he struggles to disentangle himself,  screaming, while the burns on his skin darken. Just as he squeezes free, the panther brings him back down with a set of parallel gashes on the back of his thigh.

"Hey, over here you bitch-ass overgrown pussycat!" An arrow lodges in the panther's hide; it catches fire- and the predator's attention. It whips around from a shambling Flaere to set its sights on the Marine docking another arrow in his bow. The second arrow lands in the beast's rocky chest before Sylphos whips around to lead it away through the trees.  

"Sylphos!" Flaere winces at his injuries as he gets to his feet. "Sylphos, _come back!_ "

"We've got plenty of company!" Snow catches up, panting. The forest behind him is lit up as if on _fire_. The young doctor whips around and draws a pair of pistols from his utility belt- which might have looked badass if they weren't plastic water pistols...

"Bad kitty!" He squirts the first few in the face, forcing them to back up.

"Never thought I'd see the day Sylphos was outgunned by a Super Soaker," I muse.

"Do me a favor and don't tell him you said that..." Snow pulls the pins to the water reservoirs out so the rain can top them up. _The rain..._ I look up at the cloudy sky.

"Come on!" I shout, leading them on.

My eyes alight on a clearing a short distance ahead. We burst through the leaves into a circular torrent of rain. The panthers don't dare follow but glowing eyes disperse into a ring around us, watching... _waiting._ Finn lets himself slide off my shoulder.

"What now?" he wonders aloud. I run my tongue over my lips and say nothing, eyes darting. I know my solution is only temporary. The stalemate can't last, because neither will the rain.

Just then, my phone _rings_.

"Please turn your cell phone off during the movie," Snow jokes nervously.

"Hello?" I put it on speakerphone, incredulous.

_"Gunner, it's Jun."_

My mouth twists. "You had cell service this whole time?"

_"Of course: I could have called for help, but I preferred being stuck on this deserted island with a bunch of sweaty, unwashed soldiers instead."_

"Umm..."

_"It's called sarcasm, dumbass. I had a minute to convert your phone into a two way radio."_

"Right, well, we're a little busy right now," I say in a strained voice.

_"Stop focusing on the big shiny cats, the monkeys are the key. They're not just eyes; they're a network of beacons and the panthers are homing missiles. Do you understand?"_

"Move the beacon, move the missiles," I mutter.

_"Exactly."_

"There it is," Finn whispers as loud as he dares. We follow his pointing finger to a furry creature hunched in a tree, watching us with beady eyes.

"Do you think you can knock it out of the tree?" Snow asks Flaere quickly.

"Yeah, but then what?"

"Leave that part to me." Flaere launches a punch at the tree so strong it sends vibrations up the trunk and out to the thin branch that the monkey sits on. It tumbles, screeching. In a flash, Snow pounces over the monkey, locking his arms around it.

"Snow!" I call out. It shrieks as it claws at his chest and neck, leaving him covered in tiny, red scratches. He grits his teeth, already running back the way we came.

"Go! _Now!_ " he calls back at us. The panthers abandon us to give chase.

I swallow hard because Snow isn't winning any medals for the 100 meter dash anytime soon. "Godspeed, Dr. Snow Coolidge..." I mutter under my breath.

 _"You have maybe thirty seconds before he gets turned into cat food. You might want to hurry it up."_ I forgot Jun was still on the line and hang up, grumpy, before I turn to my drenched and terrified-looking companions. He had a point though. "We should keep moving."

The forest thins out as we approach the volcano.

"The good news is they probably can't follow us out here," I say, shielding my face from the rain with a hand. "The bad news is, we're getting soaked."

"Actually, Rayce, I think _that's_ the bad news..." At Finn's words, I look up at the steep incline of black, volcanic dirt and rocks and groan aloud.

"We have to _climb_ that?" I mean, the mountain always looked steep, it just looks impossibly high from the bottom with an intention of _climbing it._ Flaere is already unfurling the braided length of climbing rope. He smiles at us winningly.

"You mean _I_ have to climb it. So no bad news at all."

Linked together with the rope, I let Flaere take the lead. He uses Jun's makeshift climbing wedges to scale the mountain, but it's his incredible form that makes it look easy. He places wedges, finds footholds, pulls himself up along the cliff face and does it all over again tirelessly like a machine. All I have to do is mimic him. Finn gets away with barely having to do anything at all: he could probably just let go entirely and Flaere wouldn't notice at all. We're making record time! Finally, something on this island is going my way. An intrusive thought: _I'm getting that vacation sex._ Which makes me grin uncontrollably before I remember that this is _definitely_ not the time for that.

The lip of the caldera is within sight when we hear it: a low rumbling noise.

"What was that?" Finn's voice sounds even softer being buffeted around by the wind. Then we _feel_ it too. The mountain shakes; we flatten ourselves to the rock on instinct. The rain is still falling, so it can't be an eruption... I look around trying to locate the source; my eyes widen when I do.

"Oh, no way..." A huge, molten foot lands heavily, making the mountain shake again. Slowly, the colossal creature emerges around the curve of the volcano. It looks like a tortoise with a domed, glowing shell, but it has to be half the size of the volcano! Freezing rain hisses on contact with the tortoise shell, but it doesn't look like it's going to slow down that volcano monster anytime soon. Mostly because it's already pretty slow... The tortoise's stone mouth falls open, revealing a glowing white gullet. A deafening, ringing moan pours out.

"What is that?! What _is that?!"_ Flaere is screaming.

"It's sounds like it's in pain..." Leave it to Finn to be concerned about a lava monster...

On the plus side, the tortoise doesn't _look_ like it's trying to hurt us, and on the negative, it does anyway. Its massive shell scrapes the volcano by accident and dislodges a bank of dirt and rocks.

"Landslide!" Flaere yells. There's nothing we can do- nowhere we can go-  caught like sitting ducks.

Greyish-black dust rolls over me in waves; my eyes stream and cloud up my vision even more. Sharp edges of rocks tear at my skin, but hey, I can live with that if I get to keep all my bones! Through the rumbling, I hear Flaere scream again. And then we're _falling._

Our descent is halted abruptly; I'm dangling from the rope. The shape of Finn hangs not far below me. When the dust finally clears, I find Flaere hanging from an extremely untrustworthy-looking handhold - so by extension - so are we.

"My wedge! It got knocked loose in the landslide!" he cries.

"Can't you just climb?" I call up at him desperately. Flaere claws experimentally at the flat surface. The rock is soft and porous, but smooth as a baby's freaking bottom.  
"I don't think so," he despairs.

Flaere pulls back in alarm when an arrow lands in the cliff face near where his hand used to be. Then another right next to it.

"Sylphos!" He cries out in mingled surprise and relief. We both retrace the arrow's path to the distant form of Sylphos at the foot of the mountain. "Watch out!" There's no way the sniper could have heard him but Sylphos turns as if he did: toward the tortoise approaching steadily. The thin, springy grass beneath it burns. _Oh no._ Even with the rain, the plants catch fire like matches; Sylphos sets off running. Flaere wastes no time grabbing the arrows and using them to climb the rest of the way.

Flat ground! Sweet, sweet, flat ground! We find ourselves at the mouth of the volcano, but Flaere is already preparing for a descent.

"Where are you going?" I ask him.

"Back," he says, almost breathless. I follow his gaze; my heart sinks. The base of mountain just looks like a bowl of fire and the tortoise is wading slowly through it. No sign of that bright blue head of hair through the smoke.

"Flaere, it's too dangerous," I try to tell him but he just shoots me a furious, grey-eyed glance.

"I _have_ to."

"But _why?!"_ I grab his wrist, terrified. "Why do you always go back?"

"Because it's for him." I let my hand slip off. It wouldn't have stopped him anyway. I watch Flaere slides down the incline, his bright orange hair quickly consumed by smoke.

I have a hell of my own to face anyway as I turn back to the volcano, lit up like a lantern by the molten glow of lava. Heat rolls over me in intense, searing waves, already baking my shirt dry.

"Goddamn," I mumble to myself as I wipe my brow on my sleeve.

"Rayce?"

"What is it now, Finn?" I ask impatiently.

"The rain stopped. _What?_ My eyes are immediately wide.

"No..." I hold out a hand, waiting, but nothing arrives. Turning my face up to the cloudy sky, I moan when I realize he's right. "No, no, no..." Begging for just a single drop of rain. The clouds lighten defiantly. But even with the rain gone, the sound of Pele's voice still chills me to the bone.

"TIME'S UP, HUMAN." The lava begins to leap and bubble in the mountain cauldron. Black smoke spews from within. My heart skips a beat and there's only one thought on my mind: _Run._

Half-sprinting, half sliding down the side of the volcano in a blind dash for the forest. Is that even going to help? Especially with a moat of fire in between! We must look crazy heading straight for it, but if you looked just over our shoulders to the carpet of molten lava chasing us, I think you could sympathize. I try to map an escape route through the flames as I keep track of lava flows in a deadly game of minesweeper, but I forgot to keep an eye on Finn. A runny stream of lava cuts between us.

"Finn!"

"Rayce!" Finn screams. He stumbles backward as the flow widens rapidly, threatening us both with its heat.  

"D-Don't be afraid!" I shout through cupped hands at him. How fucked up is it to tell someone else that when you most definitely _are_ afraid? "Loop around and meet me at the bottom!"

"I don't think that'll work," he sobs. His fluffy blonde hair is slicked to his forehead with sweat as tears spill over his cheeks.

"It will, trust me... I'll find you." If I was trying to sell him a car with that tone, he wouldn't believe me. So why does he nod and do what I say? Finn disappears behind a curtain of smoke, just like everyone else on this fucking island. And now, I'm on my own.

The heat is one thing. But the smoke is killing me. It feels like my lungs are full of hot tar. My eyes water; I shield myself with the flimsy filter of my hands as I pick my way through the fiery landscape. I hear a demonic moan and lift my head to see the glowing silhouette of the tortoise making its way through the smoke. You know what? Maybe I'm dead already and this is hell.

 _Water._ I hear water. I follow the sound incredulously to the stream: so out of place in this inferno. It must be one of the rivers that runs through the forest. I crawl over to the edge and stare at my reflection in cool blue. Then it isn't my reflection anymore as dark, sharklike eyes and a tan face rise rapidly to the surface. Komohoali'i bursts out of the water and wraps his strong arms around me. I scream, cut off abruptly as he drags me under.

 

###

 

I stir slowly. All I recall from before blacking out was intense _heat_ , but now... I feel cool air on my face, teasing my hair. A refreshing spray of water, but it tastes salty.

"What the..." I mumble to myself. I find myself on Komo's back as he swims at a breakneck pace. All around us is just endless miles of blue ocean.

"You're awake." He casts me a glance, releasing my hands. I wrap my arms around his neck to hold on instinctively.

"How did we get here?" I ask.

"Take it easy. You inhaled a lot of smoke."

Then I remember. "Where are the others?!"

"Oh, definitely dead." He grimaces regretfully.

" _What?!_ " I demand, rearing up, "Don't say that! Don't you say that! Where the hell are you taking me?"

"Back to Halo Halo. You're the last man standing, after all..." _I didn't want this._ Realization dawns on me slowly and horribly.

_'I need help. I need someone's help.'_

_'IT SEEMED LIKE A WASTE NOT TO EAT THEM WHEN THEY WERE BEING HAND-DELIVERED TO US ON A SILVER PLATTER...'_

The rain that he created, the storm that stranded us on Ele Ele...

"The sirens didn't shipwreck us, it was _you._ " He shoots me a pained look, but doesn't deny it.

"I was just trying to _fix everything..._ " I fall silent in disbelief. "But I needed help. I thought you guys could do it for sure, but..."

"You tricked us!"

"Do you think I enjoy this? Becoming exactly the kind of monster I wanted to save my people from?"

"All of this because you can't man up and tell your sister you lost her island to a one night stand? People make mistakes; she would get it!"

"Not like this one!" Komo's eyes turn dark as if the black of his pupils spilled into the white. Komo slows down when I release him and fall back into the water with a splash. I'm already swimming in the opposite direction.

"What are you doing?" he sounds exhausted when he asks.

"Going back."

"You'll never make it."

"Well unlike you, I don't bail on my friends..." That doesn't change the fact that my tiny crawl strokes aren't even making a dent in this endless sheet of blue... He's right. I'll never make it.

"You're safe and they're probably long gone. What's the point in going back?" he says bitterly, "He doesn't even love you." I freeze. Well, I would freeze, but I have to tread water. I turn around.

"What is your _problem?_ " He bares his teeth at me but there's a pained expression on his face.

"The same as yours... This is exactly the reason we're in this mess."

"...What... What really happened that day?"

He says, tight-lipped, "It was true: it all happened on the day of Makaneo's birth. But there was... More."

 

###

 

He guided his surfboard by shifting his weight between his legs: sturdy calves gave him the stance of an island god. The necklace I gave him as a symbol of my protection bounced on his chest: one of my serrated shark teeth. Koanui saw me watching him, but he was accustomed enough to the sight of my triangular dorsal fin in the water that it didn't send him running like the other islanders. He laughed a big, hearty laugh as a tropical breeze teased out his long, dark blue hair.

"I see you there, you know!"

I slipped beneath the surface, following alongside as he guided his board toward a gathering wave. I admired the shape of his body through the curling water as if through textured glass ever shifting, ever changing, but they couldn't contort the beauty of his muscular arms and sculpted torso. He turned to face me, eyes heavy with emotion as the smile on his face faded. Then he reached out to touch the wave; tan fingers broke through the portal of glass to reach towards me. I moved underneath his board instead, ducking the fins slicing through the water. With a mischievous smile, I bumped the board with my back and flipped it over.

Koanui wiped out on the beach, laughing, his hair fanned over the sand. The next wave deposited me on top of him, where I stared deeply into his eyes. He held my gaze, unintimidated. When I kissed him, he didn't respond, but he didn't push me away either. He breathed deep and slow, his broad chest rising and falling beneath me.

When I pulled back, he said, "You can't keep doing this, hoaloha... You know I'm engaged to him." But I saw it- I _saw it!_ The longing in his eyes. He loved _me_. But instead of saying that, I replied simply,

"I brought you something." With that, I twisted back into the waves, swimming to a depth that I could sink into, leaving only my eyes visible at the surface. Koanui sat up and looked at me curiously.

The next wave broke on the beach in front of him, leaving something behind as it receded: a chubby, brown body like a tiny bag of kukui nuts squirming in the seafoam. It had a tuft of blue-white hair like a wave just beginning to break. The baby fussed, pursing his lips with the threat of tears.

Koanui's eyes widened in shock. Scrambling to his feet, he scooped up the infant. I didn't think his bulging, muscular arms would adapt so quickly to cradling that little body, but he had good instincts.

"Komo, this is-!"

"His name is Makaneo," I said helpfully, "I made him for you."

"You can do that?" His jaw dropped. I chuckled.

"Not... In the way you're thinking. But yes. I've been working on him for some time."

"He's... He's so beautiful." Fascinated, he held a finger up to the child. A small hand reached out hold it. I'd never seen the big man cry before, but tears welled in his eyes now as he gazed down at Makaneo.

I remind him, "He's our son."

At that, Koanui looked up at me, face gaunt as if he had just realized some awful truth.

"You know. You know very well that I love Loulo; I'm not leaving him, Komo."

"You don't have a choice!" I snarled. "We have a child now!"

"Was that the only reason you did this?" There was disbelief in his expression.

" _You_ belong to _me_. And if you don't see it that way, then I might just have to withdraw my generous blessing." Clouds gathered quickly; like they always did when I was angered.

"You can't-"

"Familiarity has made you forget: I am a _god_ , Koanui."

Koanui clutched the child to his chest as tears spilled over his cheeks. He shook his head slowly. "Please... Please don't force me to make this choice."

"Then make the right choice!" A flash of lightning and the roar of thunder accompanied my bellow. Makaneo wailed in distress. A fork of lightning illuminated a desperate look in Koanui's eyes. He spun around and pounded toward the village, taking the baby with him.

"Koanui! _Koanui!_ " I yelled after him. I sank my fingers into the wet sand and clawed it toward myself. "You can't hide from me forever!" I could've chased him, but as his form disappeared into the lush foliage, the anger in my heart ebbed.  

 

_He didn't choose me._

 

And that- that truth was too much to bear, or even _believe_ . I circled around in the water and sped off as the rain rolled down. It wasn't long before I sensed her presence. _Pele._ I slowed to a stop and looked up at my sister hovering over the surface. The choppy waves didn't dare touch the hem of her long black dress. A crackling inferno of hair crowned her sharply defined face. Yellow-orange eyes gazed down at me sternly.

"Komohoali'i." She only had to say my name.

"He's making the wrong decision!" I insisted. "He's just a mortal, what does he know? He'll change his mind... He'll return to me..." At that point, I was talking to myself.

"He may be a mortal, but his choices are still his own. And he has made it very clear that they don't include _you._ "

"You're wrong."

" _You_ are the one who is wrong. Wrong to have tried to use a child to manipulate him for your own selfish purposes."

"What do you know?!" I howled at her, furious, "You don't know anything about us!" I used my tail to swat seawater at her, almost drenching her from head to toe. Her skin and clothes hissed and her flame hair flickered low for a moment. I had hurt her, for however brief a moment, and it injected me with sick satisfactions. She was silent for a while. "Get out of my way," I hissed.  

Pele lowered her face. I thought I saw a flicker of regret, but it could have been a trick of the light as she vanished in a swirl of black smoke. I pushed forward through the stormy sea with nothing and no one in my way this time. A hunt sounded like a good way to extinguish the remainder of those inconvenient feelings.

 

###

 

I take in Komo's story slowly.

"And now... Now it's been 25 years, I've lost Koanui and Makaneo doesn't even know who I am," he says in a ragged voice. "Your friend was wearing the necklace I gave Koanui: he pawned it off as if our love was nothing. Everything is ruined now." I'm silent for a while - because all of that is hella heavy, and I'm trying to figure out how best to carry it.

I don't even know if I have the right to, but I say it anyway, "He..." I begin slowly, "Makaneo is happy. He has a family. And he's healthy and safe. Like, _really_ bitchy and a little racist, I think... But he turned out alright in the end." Komo lifts his face slightly. I go on, "And you're wondering why I'm telling you that. Well it's not about you anymore. He doesn't need a father, he needs his _Dad_ , and you lost your shot at being Dad decades ago. What you can do right now? Is just be there for him. Apologize like _hell._ And pray to god - well, a better god than you, anyway - that someday he finds it in his heart to forgive you." Komo's lips part soundlessly; his dark eyes search mine, stunned. "And it starts with manning the fuck up and owning your mistakes," I tell him.

Komo abruptly disappears underwater. _Oh great going, Gunner..._ I scared off the deadbeat dad with ramblings about _responsibility_ and now I'm going to die out here in the middle of the ocean... That's when I see a silhouette beneath me. Komo rises to the surface, beaching me on his strong back.

"There's one other thing we could try," he says quietly.

Ele Ele looks different when we return to the island - for one thing, it barely looks like an island anymore, more like a Christmas tree strung with burning red lights in the middle of the ocean. Lava flows into the sea, kicking up tall pillars of steam. Komo slows down as we melt into the smokescreen.

"The sea tunnel," he tells me, "We could cut straight to the heart of the volcano... But I'm not sure your tiny human lungs would last that long."

"Let's do it." I take a deep breath as if it's really going to matter. _Hang in there, guys..._ We plunge beneath the waves. Oh god, can we start over? I already feel light-headed... But I can't even say that with a mouth full of saltwater. The dark blue hole comes into view like an ominous portal into the long, winding underwater tunnel. I'm starting to think my heart is way bigger than my lung capacity. Komo abruptly stops. _This is no time to be enjoying the view!_ Then I realize why: the way forward is clogged with rocks. They blocked the path.

Komo claws at the rock wall, but even his strong arms can't dislodge the blockage. In the meantime, my vision is getting hazy as my chest burn for air. Komo turns to face me, eyes wide. Then suddenly, he crushes his lips against mine, holding my head firmly to his. My tongue almost cuts itself on his sharp teeth. This isn't exactly helping! At least I don't think so until he pushes a sharp breath of air directly into my lungs. It gives me the shot of oxygen I need before he drives a torrent of water through the narrow space, blowing the rocks - and me! - violently down the tunnel.

I break the surface, gasping for air.

"We made it!" I say to no one in particular. Komo is already lifting himself from the pool. His tail splits into a pair of greyish legs as he goes. My fingers wander absentmindedly to the stretch of sharkskin where my leg wound used to be.

The tunnel opened up to a cavern carved from shiny black, volcanic rock. Silent except for the sound of dripping water nearby. This place has no business being so peaceful when it turned the whole island into a bonfire...

We hide behind a rock and peer into the main chamber.

"There it is," Komo whispers, pointing. A glowing orange orb hovers over a small pit of lava. "The Eye of Ele Ele. We need to extinguish it to stop the eruption." A trio of gorgeous women surrounds the orb like a coven of witches peering into a crystal ball. Those must be the sirens.

"It's two on three," he notes. My eyes widen when I notice something else.

"Make that four on three."

Matteo and Damon are chained to the volcano wall. Matteo shouts and rattles his chains while Damon toes the bleached bones of former prisoners at their feet. He half-heartedly punts a human skull across the room. A ruby red stiletto stops it short like a morbid soccer ball and then crushes it underfoot into ivory dust. The woman wears a dress with dramatic red ruffles, cinched tightly at the waist with a leather bustier. Her cutlass hangs at a generous hip.

Marisol's lips twist into a smile at her prisoners - or _dinner_ , maybe?

"Let's eat this one first," she muses over Matteo, "It talks too much."  

"When my guardian deity gets here, you're going to be sorry!" he spits.

"He's just not that into you, Matteo, let it go." Damon sighs.

"That's right," taunts Marisol, "He abandoned you and took your precious redhead with him."

"That's a lie," Matteo hisses, "And you know how I know? Because Rayce would never bail on us."

"Is that so?" She grins wide, toothy like a croc. "Then where is he now?" Suddenly a harpoon lodges itself in the wall near her head.

"Right here, bitch!" Her golden-green eyes widen.

Marisol dodges as Komo backs me up with his club while I pull my harpoon loose, flipping it to point the tip at her threateningly.

"You came!" Matteo gasps, excited.

"Did you ever doubt me?"  

He shoots me a look. "Not you. I was talking about _Komo!_ " I deflate a little, narrowing my eyes. Komo, on the other hand, puffs out his chest and finally gives his biggest fan what he came for: a dazzling, shark-toothed grin and a wink.

"Of course I did, I'm your kahu, aren't I?" he says. He shatters their cuffs.

"Careful who you call kahu," Marisol's voice behind us. We whip around to face the siren sisters. "He doesn't exactly have a great track record." She points her cutlass at him. "But don't worry. It's about to end _here_. Get him!"

I intercept her blade with my harpoon.

"Wow, you two really can't keep your hands off each other, can you?" I joke.

"You mean like you and the one with the black hair?" she challenges over our crossed weapons. I falter a bit. Damon and I exchange awkward glances while he wards off Perla's daggers with a knife.

"What, that? That was a one time thing- two times, _tops._ " Why am I explaining this? Marisol grins unpleasantly.

"I meant the other one," she refers to Matteo, amused. Damon's eyes widen. "You can't accept the fact that he isn't yours, so you manipulate him to get what you want. Meanwhile, _he_ knows deep down," she jerks her chin at Damon. "Maybe not today... Maybe not tomorrow... But _someday._ He's going to cave." I freeze.

"Shut up," Damon says, but I can see it in his eyes: it's working on him.

"Damon, she's just trying to get in your head," I remind him, tense.

"I said _shut up,_ didn't I?!"

Meanwhile, Komo distracted Isabelle long enough for Matteo to make a dash for the orb. He leaps over the pit of lava and snatches it out of the air, tumbling to a stop on the other side.

"I got it!" Matteo cries out, his excited expression illuminated in glowing orange.

"No!" Marisol shouts, distracted - I spot my chance, lunging forward with the harpoon aimed right at the center of her chest.

Damon deflects my harpoon with his knife.

"Oh come on!" I curse under my breath, backing up. Marisol looks surprised, but then her brows relax into a smug expression because he's doing her work for her.

"I won't let you take him from me!" Damon yells. I point my weapon at him.

"I was hoping you'd say, 'over my dead body'."

"What are you two doing?!" Matteo shouts at us. As Damon and I fight it out, Marisol directs her sisters,

"Get that orb!" Matteo's eyes widen. He whips around and sprints away with Isabelle and Perla in hot pursuit. And this _idiot_ is keeping me from rescuing him! I sweep Damon's legs out from under him _\- got him!_ \- and bring a foot down on his chest, pushing down sharply before he can get up again. The sharp point of the harpoon is balanced dangerously on his bobbing adam's apple. Damon pants hard; he glances down at it, then up at me and back again.

"Hold on, wait up," I smirk victoriously. "I'm sure I've got a one-liner for this. How about... Nice fiance, mind if I borrow it?" The smile fades. I pressure the delicate skin of his throat, drawing blood and a choked noise. "On second thought... I'm not as good at sharing as you."

I hear screaming and turn my head just in time to see Matteo bleeding from a wound in his chest. The handaxe is still half-buried in his collarbone.

"M-Matteo!" Damon and I shout at the same time. I release him, starting forward as Damon scrambles to his feet. Wincing, Matteo grits his teeth and wrenches the axe free. It hits the cavern floor with a metallic clang. Splotches of blood chase after it.

"This is my fault..." He breathes deeply, lowering his face behind waves of black hair. "I never should have been sneaking around behind your back, Damon. And Rayce, I know I have to stop leading you on." His ocean blue eyes are stormy as he lifts them to look at us. "But both of you need to stop treating everyone like _property!_ " I blink, taken aback. "I have a mind of my own and, right now, I'm trying to save my friends! So you two had better get it together and start acting like a team..." Matteo holds out the orb on his palm. It gleams, tempting Perla and Isabelle closer.

He suddenly calls out, "Service!" And launches it into the air with the heel of his palm. I grin. Beach volleyball? Now _that_ , I can do. Baffled, Marisol chases the orb through the air as I backpedal to receive it.

"It's all you!" I bump it off in Damon's general direction, giving myself just enough time to duck a swiping cutlass. Damon dives to catch it just before it hits the ground. The orb twists through the air as if it has a life of its own.

"Set me up!" Komo calls through cupped hands, sprinting alongside it.

"You're the boss, shark boy." I set the orb; it almost seems to hover in place as he leaps after. Komo twists into a somersault, morphing his legs halfway to spike the ball with his powerful shark tail. The orb shoots straight down into the pool of water, hissing as it sinks.

"He takes the kill!" I cheer and pump a fist as I leap into the air. Komo landed inelegantly on his face, splayed out on the black rocks, but he raises his head and bursts out laughing in relief.

"What have you done?!" Marisol runs to the edge of pool to watch the orange glow fade like the panther in the pond. The siren whips around to glare at us. Her sharp teeth are bared in a snarl. "You... I don't need that orb. I'll finish you myself!" Perla and Isabelle join her. But then, her eyes widen and her mouth falls open. She's looking over my shoulder, so I do too.

A woman hovers over the lava pit where the orb used to be: but that's no ordinary woman. She has to be at least seven feet tall. The silhouette of her black gown is strapless and flared like the slopes of Mount Ele Ele. But definitely, the most striking thing about her is her fiery head of hair. And I mean, literal _fire_ framing her brown face in flickering, reddish-orange. I'm guessing _this_ is Pele...  

"Sister!" Komo squeaks. She lowers her yellow-orange eyes briefly to her brother before turning a severe gaze on the siren sisters.

"I am the goddess Pele, and you are trespassing on my island." She says, measured. Her voice has undertones like a crackling hearth, as if a fire burns in her throat.

"We-We're sorry, my lady..." Perla bows low.

"We won't make this mistake again..." Isabelle does the same, but they're both backing quickly in the direction of the tunnel. They twist on a dime and dive right in. Scaly tails flick at the surface and then they're gone. I expect Marisol to follow - and if she were smart, she would - but she looks furious instead. Her ruby red lip curls.

"I'm not afraid of you... I defeated your little brother and held your precious island for decades. I can best you too!" Marisol charges with her sword raised. All Pele has to do is look at her.

I watch, horrified as Marisol abruptly bursts into flames. Shrieks echo from the ceiling. When the flames die down, there's only a pile of bones in its place. The hollow-eyed skull on top of the pile has pointed teeth. Pele helps Komo to his feet.

"Pele, that stuff she said about the island; she didn't know what she was talking about..." Komo looks guilty. He sighs and starts again. "Well, actually..."

"I knew," Pele says simply.

"Y-You did?"

"Do you honestly think I don't know what goes on in my own islands? I wanted you to deal with this situation you created." Pele arches a shapely eyebrow and smiles at him slightly. "Perhaps it was cruel of me to leave you in the dark... But you need to find closure without my help." Komo stares down at his hands.

"I think... I think I'm getting there."

"This is such a beautiful moment..." Matteo coos as he stumbles toward us, hands clasped together. "I'm happy for both of you." He pats Komo's shoulder. "You know what they say: blood is thicker than seawater." Speaking of which, he's lost a lot of it. I catch Matteo before he falls over on his face.

"Matteo!" I cry out. Pele regards him with a vaguely interested expression.

"You helped my sweet little brother so much; it only seems fair that I help you in return."

 

###

 

Pele steps into the oasis in the woods, her black dress trailing behind her. She muses over Matteo's limp form in her arms as she goes, "I repaired my little brother's body in this very pool. The damage was so extensive... But he was reborn from it as Komohoali'i: the patron deity of sharks."

"Ey, sis," Komo says, grinning sheepishly as he folds his arms behind his head. "That was forever ago."

Pele smiles at him wanly. "Oh, you'll always be that adorable little boy ripped in half by sharks to me..." I tug on my collar and clear my throat.

"Less dismembered kiddos and more saving Matteo, please."

As Pele lowers Matteo into the water, it seems to glow extra bright, and extra blue. I've seen it happen before - to me, in fact - but I'm still stunned, when Matteo's injury zips itself up under new, grey skin. He blinks, slowly coming back around. Blue eyes widen as he gazes up at Pele's face.

"H-Hey, thanks," he stammers. Smooth...

"You're very welcome, human." Pele's lips lilt kindly; she lets him down. Her attention turns to the forest when we hear a rustling in the leaves. Panthers- and that still gives me a mini heart attack- but I remember they're Pele's pets when she reaches forward to scratch one fondly behind the ear. It shuts its eyes and head bunts against her palm, a low purr forming in its throat.

"Did you find them, Kailani?" she asks in a tone reserved for pets and babies. In response, the panther turns back to the trees. I'm much more interested when the rest of the guys step out of the foliage, bracketed by an escort of big cats. A little dazed and confused, but,

"You're _alive!_ " I run toward them. Jun takes one look at my outstretched arms and narrows his eyes at me. He hugs himself rigidly instead. Ah. Right.

"Rayce!" Finn on the other hand, hops right into my embrace and returns it with ten time as much enthusiasm.

"I was so worried," I breathe, planting a kiss on his head before burrowing into his curly blonde hair.

"I wasn't." He squeezes. "I knew you'd save the day like you always do."

As Komo waves a hand over the pool, a whirlpool forms in the center.

"Thank you all for everything you've done for us. This current will take you back to Halo Halo when you're ready."

"Sweet, sweet open bar, here I come..." Jun is more than ready. He sprints right into it, vanishing in a flash of purple hair. I hang back as the others filter into the portal one at a time. Finn pops up on his tiptoes to plant a kiss on my cheek.

"See you on the other side!" His cannonball is the lamest thing I've ever seen but it makes me smile anyway. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Matteo smooch his fiance. They exchange a few inaudible words before his hands slip from Damon's. He goes through the portal next. Damon's dark eyes are trained on me now. I draw myself up straight as he comes this way.

"So it's over, huh?" he says nonchalantly, "Once we're on the other side, we're Damon and Rayce again."

"I think you'll find it's _Rayce_ and Damon." But I'm smiling jokingly as I say it. Hey, he must have thought it was funny because he answers my joke with a kiss.

Damon lets me ease into it, twisting receptively. I sink my tongue in his mouth as I run my fingers through sexy black hair. He doesn't wrestle me this time. We play tag instead, back and forth between our lips. Damon breaks it off; his eyes glimmer like the obsidian of the caverns. Of course, _now_ he stops...

Damon doesn't give me a chance to speak when he walks away. At the edge, he spins around, throwing me a salute and a wide grin before allowing himself to fall backward into the whirlpool.

"Hey, Rayce," Komo pipes up as I move to follow. He doesn't even seem to know how to continue, looking at me with desperate eyes: _Thank you._

"I know." I assure him.

 

###

 

"Y-You came back! All of you! How did you survive?" Koanui is exclaiming. I plant my hands on my hips and push my chest out as I address the gathering.

"We didn't just survive, we solved your mermaid problem, which was actually a siren problem, by slaying them once and for all!" The locals and soldiers alike break out into cheers. Koanui proudly slips an arm around - oh, hold up just a second - the green-haired swindler from the jewelry store? Propping his dark sunglasses up on his head, the shopkeeper reveals small, but impossibly bright grey eyes.

"I told you I found the right man to sell your necklace to."

"Ah Lou, what does that have to do with anything?" Koanui chuckles slightly and waves a hand, dismissive. "The important thing is that Halo Halo Island is safe again."

"Yeah," Makaneo scoffs sarcastically from where he leans against a wooden pillar with his arms crossed. "Now it's safe for eeeeveryone to go sailing in storms; you got us out of a real pickle there..."

I smile at him knowingly. "You're welcome, Neo." He rolls his eyes.

"We must celebrate!" Koanui announces, "With a good old fashioned Halo Halo beach bonfire." Now _that_ sounds more like a vacation.

The weather is still balmy as the sun sets. Propped up against a log in the sand, I wiggle my toes in front of the fire. One of the waiters plays light-hearted ukulele music as soldiers show off their best-worst drunk dance moves in the flickering light. Snow is really killing it out there. He's still too young to drink, so he amuses himself by seducing everyone else with his hula dancer outfit. Coconut shell bra and everything. He bounces his hip, arms over his head, revelling in the attention. What's the lesson plan for today? A horny moron's guide to jailbait?

Pressing the rim to my lips, I tilt back a bottle of beer. My gaze wanders to the other side of the bonfire where Damon reclines with an arm around Matteo. Matteo's hands move animatedly as he speaks, going on and on as usual. A cocktail hangs loose in Damon's grip as he fondly watches his fiance.

Ah, I don't need to cross a ring of fire just for company. I glance down at Jun's purple head of hair resting against my chest. Obviously, he's asleep, having burned himself out too early on too many mai tais. Different thong, different drinks, different night and yet the same old Jun. I unbutton my shirt and toss it over him preemptively, shooting a glare at the next guy who looks at him a little too long.

Another head rests in my lap. I brush through Finn's curls while he stares up at the stars. His thin legs are laid across Flaere's thighs. I've never seen someone look so tense with a lei around their neck and a pina colada in their hands... I follow Flaere's gaze to a group of Marines in the buffet line. Sylphos chats with his teammates, pausing to toss back his head and laugh. His cerulean braids are knotted in a bold ponytail.

Flaere gives a start when I slap him hard on the back.

"Go get 'im, tiger," I say encouragingly.

"Y-You think I should?" he asks, nervous.

Finn lazily raises a pale fist in solidarity. "We believe in you, Flaere!" Flaere's smile is nervous, but at least it's a smile! He quickly tilts his head to drain the contents of the coconut shell before he goes over there.

"Our little Flaere is heading out into the wilderness all by himself," Finn jokes.

I grin. "He is so gonna die." The Marines cue in on him as he approaches, wrapping around him in a half-circle like a clique of mean, popular kids. But he has his eyes on the meanest mean girl of them all. Sylphos folds his arms as he looks down his nose at the soldier. I can't quite hear what Flaere is saying but it doesn't seem to be the _wrong_ thing... Sylphos shuts his eyes and stands back, smirking a little bit as if he's actually considering the ridiculous proposition. Then - get this - he actually gives in, putting a hand in Flaere's outstretched palm. Flaere just lights up; he can't believe his luck. Sylphos lets a laugh slip as the ginger pulls him onto the dancefloor and they start to move. Drunk Marines and soldiers tease and cheer them on.

I add a wolf-whistle to the ruckus, grinning. That's when Finn holds up a twenty dollar bill in front of my face.

"Can you go get me a drink, Rayce?"

"It's an open bar, you know." I glance down at him.

"On second thought, I could use more than one..." He adds another. "Or maybe we should get the lobster." He raises an entire wad of green for me to ogle.

"Wh-Where did you get all this cash?" I ask him.

"Damon gave it to me," he says, "All I did was show him your last entry for the bet." He shows me his phone screen next. My eyes widen at a picture of me on top of Damon by the stream. And _he_ knows what happened, and _I_ know what happened, but the picture wouldn't tell you that: from that angle, it looks like I'm just straight up _fucking_ him.

"And I might have mentioned I was planning to send it to all the other doms just to make sure it counted." Finn shrugs a little.

"Nooooo..." I grin wide. "Don't tell me my adorable Finn is capable of _blackmail_."

"Blackmail?" Finn sounds so innocent. "I don't know the meaning of the word. I just thought Damon could use a little help repenting..."

"You. Are. Amazing." He leans up to accept a peck on the lips. "You're right, this calls for more drinks! Watch Jun for me, would you?"

"Nothing too strong!" Finn calls after me.

"Extra girly, got it." I finger-gun at him.

At the bar, I signal to the bartender and say, "Cosmopolitan." At the exact same time as someone else. Matteo turns to me in surprise. I blush. "I-It's not for me, obviously..." He smiles.

"Relax Gunner, no one expects you to pound Jager bombs every night." Then he winks at me. "Except for you." Damon let him keep his adorable, slouchy tank top on tonight and it makes me want him even more.

"You look great," I say.

"Thanks..." Matteo looks away, bashful.

"Vacation sex." That gets his attention again.

"Wh-What?"

"You wanted vacation sex, right?" I repeat, "I have notes. Handcuffs: the cute, fuzzy kind. Silk blindfold for class. Whipped cream, then eat the cherry out of your ass. Missionary is never boring when it's on a hotel roof. Do it drunk on pina coladas. Eat pineapple- trust me on that one. And I know people say not to do it in hot tubs, but the infection is _totally_ worth it." Matteo is bright red and speechless. He turns to the bar, tucking wavy black hair behind an ear. His lip trembles because he wants _all of that_ and he is really, really wishing he could go to bed - and literally everywhere else - with me tonight. Usually, I'd just let him stew in it until he did something dumb. But tonight I say, "Damon is super good at that stuff. Give him ideas." Poor Matteo is so shocked and confused, but when he smiles at me again, he looks a little relieved too.

"Thanks for the advice. That reminds me." He slips the shark tooth necklace off over his head and extends it to me on his palm. "I've been meaning to give this back. I think you should have it."

Staring at it, I say distractedly, "You're wrong about that... But I do know who should _really_ have it."

 

I find Makaneo walking down the beach with a surfboard tucked under his arm.

"Neo! Hey, wait up!" He takes a glance at me over his shoulder, but doesn't slow down for a second.

"Leave me alone, haole, today is my day off," he says irritably.

"But I have something for you!" With a heavy sigh, he does stop and turn to look at me. He looks unimpressed at the necklace I place around his neck. Holding up the tooth on his palm, he says in an exaggerated tone,

"Really, you're giving me Dad's old necklace back? We've been trying to get rid of it for years, but Daddy Lou wouldn't let us sell it to just anyone. Your friend must have great chakras or lunar cycles or whatever."

"The awesome consulting job you're going to get is pretty far from home. I just thought you might want to take a piece of it with you." His gaze softens a little. "Besides, I felt bad for breaking your lei."

"And shoving it up my ass," he reminds me with an arched eyebrow.

"And that..." But I can't hold it, breaking into a grin. "Okay, no, I enjoyed that too much."

Neo laughs. He looks at me mischievously. "Hey, you wanna go surfing?"

Hell yes, except that I can't surf. But that's okay, because Makaneo does.

"Wooohooo!" I shout over the roar of the ocean. Standing behind Makaneo on his board, I watch the master at work. He maneuvers the  board with the tiniest shift of body weight, rising and falling, as liquid as the ocean around us. It's second nature to him.

"That one's going to be a monster." Makaneo points at a baby wave crawling towards the beach.

"You sure?" I ask, doubtful. He's already paddling eagerly toward it.

"Trust me!" Sure enough, that baby devours the sea before it, growing rapidly to twice its size- thrice! Even bigger! In the dark, the monster wave looks like a huge wall of water and we're heading straight for it like we're going to pancake on it. Makaneo positions us perfectly to zip straight through the barrel of the wave as it collapses in on itself. I look around in amazement as the wave seals us off from the rest of the world in a tunnel made of surging water. Shadows play over Neo's strong body carved out by waves like this one; his blue hair ruffles in the wind. I wrap my arms around his wet torso. Then I notice a dark grey shape swimming close to the wall of the wave tunnel. The silhouette of a _shark_ \- but only the tail end of one. The rest of the shadow is humanoid. Suddenly, fingers break through the rushing wall of water, reaching for Makaneo. I hear him gasp out loud- he twists unintentionally and we go crashing down.

The ocean spits us out on the beach; Makaneo sits up immediately.

"Did you see that? What the hell was that?!" He scans the ocean frantically.

"What? I didn't see anything," I lie. "It's just really dark out." I give him something else to look at instead as I roll over on top of him.

"Y-Yeah..." Makaneo calms down a little. His tireless realism will let him override his brain. I push him flat on the surfboard on his back. He's already conveniently chained to it with the board leash cuffed to his ankle. I reveal the bulge in his swim trunks as I drag them slowly from his hips. He flashes me a heavy-lidded look.

"Oh yes," Neo moans when I pump his thick cock. He hardens almost immediately, rising as if to give me access. And just in case that wasn't clear, he folds his legs too and holds himself open at the inner thighs, practically begging for it. I coax my own hardness through an open fly and feed it inch by inch into his incredibly forgiving, stretchy entrance. Neo arches sensually, then moves back against me in time with my thrusts, rhythmic.

His cries get more raw as I pick up the pace - it's not enough - he props his ankles up on my shoulders like a slut. Not that I'm complaining! I lock down on his shins with both hands and deliver shortened, deep thrusts right where he can appreciate them the most. His eyelids flutter in ecstasy.

"I'm close! Don't stop! Don't stop!" he gasps.

"Wasn't planning on it," I grunt in return. But neither of us can get there when a strong wave blindsides us. I can't tell whether it's bad luck or Komo's way of telling us to knock it off!  

Makaneo spits out a mouthful of seawater. Then his laughter reaches me through the night air and I can't help but join in. He shakes his head with mirth. "I have sand in places I'd really prefer not to. Should we try that again?"

"Not unless you want to have sex with sandpaper," I chuckle.

Rolling onto my side, I gently turn Makaneo's face toward me. It's so fucking gorgeous; I kinda want to smuggle it through customs.

"I'll come back someday. I'll come visit you," I suggest. His eyes just twinkle at me.

"You won't find me here next time."

"Then visit me on the mainland."

He grins wide. I hear the ambition in his voice, "When I get to the mainland, you won't be able to afford me anymore."

"You're going to do great..." But I sound sad when I say, "So this is goodbye, then?"

"'Goodbye' is such a terrible word. I like ours better." He slips his fingers in the spaces between mine, squeezing gently. "Aloha, until we meet again."

 

###END###

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *clears her extremely strange, shark-related browser history*
> 
> I hope you enjoy the tail end of your summer (if you're in the same hemisphere) as much as I enjoyed writing this special! And if you enjoyed both, don't forget to show a little support on your way out. As always, thanks for reading and aloha, until our next adventure!
> 
> \- Kassiopeia


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